Review: Maniac Driver

Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2023
Images from the Internet

Maniac Driver
Directed by Kurando Mitsutake
Akari Pictures; Reelgore Releasing; 8 Ball Films; DiabolikDVD; MVD Visual
75 minutes, 2020 / 2022
www.mvdvisual.com

Although this film is Japanese in origin and language (with subtitles), it may be inspired by the real Hong Kong serial killer portrayed in Dr. Lamb. He was also a taxi driver serial killer.

The opening credits’ title states this is a “Japanese Giallo.” Well, the opening sequence screams of it, as a woman in a spandex bathing suit sensually strips in a shower, and is murdered by the titular, Fujinaga (Tomoki Kimura). The color palate (by Shuji Hamamoto and Mitsuo Kojima) is correct for a Giallo, with lots of primary colors, a knife, and a helmeted killer. Actually, what the opening made me think of was a cross between Italian Giallo and the ending credits of What’s Up Tiger Lily? (1966).

Tomoki Kimura, Iori Kogawa

The tone of the over-thought narration describing the city definitely smacks of Taxi Driver (1976). Kimura even looks a bit like a younger DeNiro; heck, there is even a scene with him in front of a mirror holding a weapon and giving the whole “You talking to me?” speech. I have no doubt this was meant as an homage, rather than a rip-off.

While this definitely has a retro-Giallo feel, there is a Japanese spin on it. For example, as a businesswoman is being chased, she takes off her jacket so the film camera can get her braless bouncing, there is a close-up slo-mo shot of her backside where you can see her underwear beneath her overly short skirt, and, of course, by the end of the scene, her top is exposed. To be fair, in the body of the film (pun not intended), there is also male nudity.

The driver is depressed after his wife was murdered and he was stabbed in a home invasion by someone with the same helmet as him. This sours him on society, and both wants to die and to kill. But, how much of his killing his customers is real and what is fantasy? This is a territory touched on in American Psycho (2020).

The nudity and sex is a-plenty here, so it is no surprising that many of the women/victims in this film come from the world of adult cinema, such as Saryu Usui, Ayumi Kimito, and Ai Sayama (as is stated on the back of the Blu-ray box. Through fantasy and memory, this turns out to be quite a softcore flick. There is also extraordinarily little actual dialogue, with most of the philosophizing happening in the driver’s head. It ranges from injustices, to positive feminism, to despair.

Slowly, as his anger as desperation grows, he starts looking for a victim to take out his perceived vengeance on society and to end his own miserable life. Meanwhile, we see him taking customers in his cab numerous times, through a cab-cam with somewhat blocked faces. Did you know that DeNiro drove a cab in New York for two months to get a better idea of what the character goes through?

There are a lot of shots of Tokyo and the editing (John Migdal) and cinematography (Makoto Hayashi) is noteworthy, such as the city reflected through the moving hood of the dark taxi. Most of the shooting is normalized, but the fantasies are in high-art Giallo colors and lighting techniques. The music during these sequences are also interesting, in a distorted way.

Things pick up when he meets his (adult) “Jody Foster” in the form of injured Mayumi (Iori Kogawa), and he finally sets in motion to carry out his idea for a murder/suicide. Heck, there is even a long-haired villain (Yoshiki Kondô) who is reminiscent of Harvey Keitel.

When the reality is revealed and the facts are finally shown, well, some of it took me by pleasant surprise. The ending nicely sums it up, but I won’t tell…

The extras on this Blu-ray are as follows: an Audio Commentary by the director, Kurando Mitsutake, who fortunately is very fluent in English, so no subtitles needed (born in Toyko, grew up in Fresno, CA). He skillfully goes back and forth between descriptions of what is happening on the screen, and anecdotes about the whole process and the cast/crew. Worth at least one listen. We also learn that the title is a mash-up of insane serial killer flick Maniac (1981), and said Taxi Driver.

The “Maniac Driver: Behind the Scenes”-featurette (30 min) is exactly that, mostly setting up shots (and then we see what they filmed), and includes some brief interviews with the main cast. It is very basic but kept my interest. Finally, there is a Trailer (in English) and Slideshow, along with a nice 4-sided box insert cover with images of the film’s original posters. There are also subtitles available in three languages.

There is a prestigious amount of nudity, sex, and violence, not to mention blood and some gore (SFX by Yoshinari Dohi). The story is a bit weak and repetitive at times, and seems to circle around the point, but by the third Act, it is quite a ride.

IMDB listing HERE

For some reason, the trailer on YouTube is captioned in German:

Review: All Your Friends Are Dead

Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2023
Images from the Internet

All Your Friends Are Dead
Directed by Ricky Glore and Nicholas Hiance
NKY Films, SRS Cinema
92 minutes; 2023
www.thenky.com/
www.srscinema.com/
www.rickyglore.com

It can be really interesting to see a debut directorial effort (which tends to be in the horror genre), but double the pleasure, double the fun because this is true for both of those who helmed this slasher project.

Ricky Glore

Mixing a few subgenres, such as masked killer, cabin in the woods, and social anxiety, the story wraps around the lead character, Matt Wilbee (co-director Ricky Glore), who is suffering from a severe case of depression. Once a star athlete in high school, he’s now let himself “go,” including having a drinking problem (in the first 7 minutes, he drinks more than I have in 7 years). Though working in a lowly position in a bar cleaning up, he is about to be homeless thanks to drinking his money away.

Despite his present destitute status, Matt was once part of an exclusive group in high school known as The Pack, who he has not been in contact with in years. Deciding to end his life, he inadvertently assembles The Pack one last time in a secluded campground around Bellevue, Kentucky (the filming location), where they last met around graduation, consisting of the imaginatively named perky Sarah Sunnrae (Eileen Earnest), bully Derek Pummel (Jason Ervin), now rich, buff and obnoxiously narcissistic Greg Neighsayer (Patrick M. Johnston), gay Larry Cochran (Chance Kilgour), and Larry’s lonely bestie, Lorie Blotter (Kira L. Wilson). Another good name for The Pack might be The Fodder.

Kira L. Wilson, Chance Kilgour, Patrick M. Johnston

Whereas the first Act introduces the protagonist, the second fills the viewer in on The Pack, and what a pack they are. There is no problem in distinguishing one personality from another, they are all their own beings, be it good or bad. There is also a truer level of angst between them and Matt, as well as between each other. Sparks fly (not necessarily the fun kind) as they stake their egos on their presentations.

I also enjoyed the certain level of meta going on, with discussions about how this would be the ideal setting for a slasher film, which of course this becomes in the third Act when the masked killer comes a-callin’.

Eileen Earnest

There are some nice red herrings to who is behind the mask. Honestly, I figured it out early on, but it was still worth sitting through the film to confirm. Lots of nice slice and dicing going on, with both decent practical effects and over the top CGI (as usual, mostly the splatter).

This is a dry comedy (with some out-loud laughs), dealing with both dialogue and characterizations. The actors give some credence to the parts they play, though sometimes reach a bit over the top. However, Glore seems to be in his element, ranging from sympathetic depression to maniacal.

Of course, as with most slashers – especially micro-budget ones – the instruments of death tend to be long and sharp albeit sometimes gas-fed. Speaking of budgets, the overall tone of the film is not quite minimalist, but definitely has a low-key flair that suits it well. You can tell they got every penny out of their budget. What I like about that is that the film – particularly the story – does not try to be more than it is; in other words, it does not pretend to be artsy or have too deep a meaning, but is out there for the fun of it, as well as getting experience for both first-time directors.

While the release is fun to watch, despite the somewhat depressing life of Matt, it is also worth sitting through the credits for a few reasons that I will not give away. Just ask yourself, “What hath Marvel started?!”

Fans of limited run special edition horror movies will have the opportunity to pre-order the film at the SRS Cinema’s Website (see eAddress above). The disc will include extras, such as a “Making Of” featurette, a commentary by the Director and Producers, the film’s trailer, and a host of other SRS trailers.

IMDB listing HERE

Review: Mind Leech

Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2023
Images from the Internet

Mind Leech
Directed by Chris Cheesesmith and Paul Krysinski
Cheesesmith Productions; Dog Darnel Productions; Mind Leech Productions
60 minutes, 2023
www.mindleech.com/

1998. What a year to be alive. Bill Clinton was presi… oh, wait, this film takes place in Provinstate, filmed juuust East and North of Toronto, Ontario, so Jean Chrétien was Prime Minister, the economies were up, it is Christmas Day, and it was a great time to be living in a small town in a rural area. Until…

In the pre-credits summertime prologue, two guys (director Chris Cheeseman and Hugh Goodden) start things rolling thanks to Chem Corp, who told them to get “rid” of a container of a strange substance, and their own yahoo-for-cash mentality, contaminating a lake.

Steff Ivory Coover and Misccha O'Hoski

When we pick up the story with the New Year a week or so away, something is affecting and killing the local wildlife. We learn this through two police officers, Deputy DJ Thompson (Steff Ivory Conover) and Sherriff Ben Paley, Jr. (Mischa O’Hoski).

The action really starts quite quickly (remember, this film is only an hour in length) when a large and slimy worm-like creature (the titular leech) attaches itself to ice fisherman Craig Hoser (yes, Hoser; co-director Paul Krysinski) head, taking over his mind. There are bound to be references made to Cronenberg’s Shivers/They Came from Within (1975), and Henenlotter’s Brain Damage (1988). And like those two, this is a very dark comedy. For example, the name of the town is a mix of Province and State, covering both countries. There is also a shot in a barn that is bound to remind the viewer of Alien (1979).

The parasite causes Craig to go on a killin’ spree, full of blood and gore, but that should come as no surprise. While this was the feature debut of both directors, much of the key players have worked SFX on some major horror fare over the last few years, such as Spiral (2021) and Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City (2021). Here, the SFX are handled by Chris Cooper.

This was filmed in the middle of winter. Man, it looks cold. Then again, as I write this, it is -30F out my door (pre-windchill), so I can comprehend and appreciate. That is dedication. It is a relatively toasty 69F in my house, with hot soup warming on the stove. But I digress…

Of course, this is not a stationary creature – they never are – and has more than one victim, as it moves around (or is moved around by its host). As it forces its human victim to drive from place to place, it is quite erratic, bringing up memories of a less blissful Frank Parnell (Fox Harris) from Repo Man (1984).

I love it when a film knows its own correct length, without trying to pad it out to “feature” duration. This keeps the filler to a minimum, and there is a lot more action per minute. This is especially true with low budget film making.

O'Hoski

Despite the low costs, the creature looks really good; most of the time it is relatively immobile while attached to its victim. Still, the 3-foot long leech look teriff, especially the close-ups of its face, or where it is attached to the human it has commandeered. When the viewer realizes the aim of the creature, it makes total sense.

While there are some actors here with previous listings, for others this is the first acting notch on IMDB, everyone is really impressive, especially Conover, who seems to have played herself in earlier work than in a scripted part.

A truly decent creature feature that should be a wowzer on the Festival trail, and I recommend it if you get the chance to see it. Fun.

IMDB listing HERE

Review: Legend of Gatotakaca

Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2023
Images from the Internet

Legend of Gatotakaca (aka Satria Dewa: Gatotakaca)

Directed by Hanung Bramantyo
Horizon Film Entertainment; Netflix; Lumine Studio;
Satreia Dewa Studio; Well Go USA Entertainment; Hi-YAH!
129 minutes, 2022 / 2023
www.instagram.com/gatotkaca_official/?hl=en
https://wellgousa.com/films/legend-gatotkaca
www.hiyahtv.com
#LegendOfGatotakaca @WellGoUSA

When I see a name of a release or character like this, I tend to run it through Wikipedia. From this, I learned that, in Indonesia, where this film originated (abbreviated quote): “Ghatotkacha (Sanskrit for "Bald Pot") is a prominent character in the story of Mahabharata. He was important fighter in the Kurukshetra war and caused a great deal of destruction and killed many demons.” He has been the subject of many films, mostly out of India.

The "real" Ghatotkacha 

The name may not roll off the English tongue very easily, but he is a warrior hero. In the action-filled prologue, we are introduced to the child Yuda, who is sought by a band of assassins. Their purpose it to find an heirloom with mystical powers, a medallion called Brajamusti.

To be honest, I am not familiar with the Indonesian god-myth culture, nor their ancient literature, such as the referenced Mahabharata (~400 BCE-400 CE) here, in a similar way they may not be familiar with, say, Beowulf (~1000 CE), Grimm’s Fairy Tales (1812), or the ancient mythological pantheon of gods of Greece, Rome, or Scandinavia (Odin, Thor, etc.). It might be good to either have Wikipedia open to throw in some of the names or terms, or just say screw it and enjoy it as it lays, as one would with the Dynasty days films of the Shaw Brothers.

After the prologue, we focus on now college student Yuda (Rizky Nazar). His mother Animbi (Sigi Wimala) is suffering from memory loss, his father Pandega (Cecep Arif Raham , from John Wick Chapter 3), disappears at the beginning, and whose best pal (Jerome Kurnia) is assassinated by a masked man with superpowers during college graduation. Yudi knowing Silat (Indonesian martial arts) does not help. Yet.

Through a learned source, Arya Laksana (Edward Akbar) and his daughter, obvious love interest Agni (Yasmin Napper), Yudi learns that the gods of the Mahabharata are real, residing in the home of the gods, Kadewatan, where Lord Shiva (aka Batara Guru rules); think Asgard and Odin. In fact, it may be helpful to imagine this is part of the Indonesia version of the Marvel Universe (MCU). The stories of Dr. Donald Blake becoming Thor after finding his source of power, his hammer Mjölnir, in a cave. I realize that the story may sound complex, but even if you don’t know the fictional characters, the storyline is quite easy to follow. For example, if you were to sit down and watch any of the MCU films, you can mostly follow along even if you have never picked up a comic book. Going forward, I will use the MCU and DC Universe (DCU) myths equivalency in brackets.

The two gods in question in this story are Pandava [Thor], and his descendants who use their power for good, and his rival Kaurava [Loki] and his lineage, who use it for, well, you know. So the Pandava group [Justise League], such as archer Dananjaya (Omar Daniel) [Green Arrow] and young Gege (scene stealer Ali Fikry) are under threat of the Kaurava one [The Legion of Doom], to restore to power an evil upper echelon god, Aswatama via his masked and his mysterious cowled underling with superpowers to steal souls [Emperor Palpatine and Darth Vader] and bring the coming of the evil gods, which is scheduled for (wait for it) 2023. Mr. Cowl is helped by Beceng (Yayan Ruhian, who was in John Wick Chapter 3:and Star Wars: Episode VII: The Force Awakens). There is a lot of exposition given to the viewer throughout.

Of course, the sworn enemy to stop this is…good guy Gatotkacha. And who is the reincarnation of said Gatotkacha who will emerge with the help of the medallion? Pretty obvious. And that is when the action really picks up. There are some good fights in the early part of the film (including some wire work), but it is also filled with lots of talking, to explain what is going on to the uninformed watching it (e.g., me).

Agni is being pursed by marriage by bully Nathan (Axel Matthew Thomas). I can see where this is going as the lamb’s blood on a door frame. Same to be said about who is the unknown “Vader” villain. Through most of this, the medallion’s powers are minimal, post-human rather than superhuman, until the final fight.

There are lots of reflections on other films than the three I mentioned. For example, there is a bit of The Power Rangers, Mortal Kombat, and even Shazam!, thanks to the medallion.

The film is enjoyable but has three issues: first, if a bit hard to follow at times; second, they try to put too much into one film (the MCU and DCU 3-hour mega-extravaganzas tend to do this a lot), but the weakest link is its length. It does not need to be this long, nor complex. As I said, it is easy to view it for what it is and leave it at that. I mean, I did not read the Lord of the Rings books (never made it past page 25 in the first one), and it was also overcomplex, yet I enjoyed the films for what they presented. If one just goes to see it as an action film, well, there is plenty of that, along with mucho exposition and talking. I believe that perhaps maybe even the younger Indonesians may not know the legends well, and that is part of why it is so wordy with explanations.

Who the masked, unnamed villain is, came as no surprise to me as I figured it out early on. And, of course, it is setting up for either a sequel or a franchise. Understandable.

The film debuts exclusively on the martial arts streaming service Hi-YAH!, before landing on Digital, and Blu-ray.

IMDB listing HERE

Review: Friend of the World

Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2023
Images from the Internet

Friend of the World

Directed by Brian Patrick Butler
Charybdis Pictures; Gray Area Multimedia; Troma Entertainment
50 minutes, 2021
www.facebook.com/FOTWmovie/
https://charybdispictures.com/friend-of-the-world/

At 50 minutes, this post-apocalypse comedy thriller is too long to be considered a short, yet too short to be considered a feature. I appreciate that the director made it just as long as it is supposed to be, without much filler, or a truncated story. Plus, it helps with the micro-budget, which I respect. It is also a perfect length for festivals.

In a similar theme to “The Last of Us” television series, this story is about the survivors of a fungal infection that transforms the affected into zombie-like people, who seem to want to spread the disease more than eat living flesh.

Filmed mostly in black and white, we meet artist/videographer Diane Keaton (Alexandra Slade; any relation to Noddy Holder? Sorry…), who survived a massacre in a secured basement. She manages to get to another floor and meets gruff General Gore (Nick Young). He makes no bones that he is a hardass, giving similar, yet militarily edged vibes of the John Goodman character in 10 Cloverfield Lane (2016).

I am not sure if the virus was caused by a war, or the war was caused by the virus, but there seems to be very few survivors, either by the infection or by gunshot (hence the basement carnage).

The black and white gives this a noir feel, and the lighting is impeccable; it could be now, it could be a 1940s film, though the assault rifles are a giveaway. The constrained spaces of the rooms, the steam pipes, etc., give it an eerie, almost claustrophobic feel, especially Gore’s habitat (okay, room). They slowly make their way through the underground complex, not quite sure where they are going or how to get out. Or if there is anything worth getting out for.

Diane (whom Gore calls String Bean), is a Lefty, and cigar-chompin’ Gore definitely on the militaristic war mongering Right, yet they occasionally find common ground. His comments, such as his hostility towards LGBTQ in his comments, betrays that leaning. But through it all, he’s more accepting of everything, where she is, well, let us say grumpy, having trouble accepting a situation she does not appear to remember getting into. Gore seems to keep her around not just for the only company, but for procreation to get the world restarted, with him as its leader, like it or not.

Meanwhile, Diane misses her girlfriend, Eva (Kathryn Schott), who we see (in color; there are a couple of other color sections) in archival footage shot by Diane in the prologue.

As with Alice down the rabbit hole, Diane and Gore transverse the space running into unusual characters, such as a hairy and philosophizing “rat” man, Berenger (Michael C. Burgess), among other surprises. Is this real, or is it part of hallucinations due to a supposed vaccine they take?

While esoteric at times, this short feature (see what I did there?) never talks down to its audience, but at the same time keeps the attention throughout. A really well-made film.

Available on Troma Now!, TubiTV, Plex, Prime Video, Apple TV and Xumo, among many others.

IMDB listing HERE

Review: Doomsday Stories

Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2023
Images from the Internet

Doomsday Stories
Directed by Derek Braasch, Marcelo Fabani, Phil Herman,
James Panetta, Joel D. Wynkoop
Cheevies Film Productions; Herman Productions;
IkuZo! Studios; Lonewolf Studios Uruguay; Wynkoop Productions
120 minutes; 2023
www.facebook.com/search/top?q=doomsday%20stories

It has been a while since I reviewed an anthology film. Personally, I like them as a concept, generally. It is like reading short stories instead of a novel. And as I have posited before, anthologies tend to fall into three different categories: the first is a series of short films cobbled together, such as The ABCs of Death (2012); the second is a few stories strung together to tell a larger story like Bad Candy (2021); and the third is the one where the stories are all mixed up together, going back and forth with either overlapping characters, or jump around. What tends to be the most common aspect that is usually present is the wraparound story, which introduces either the premise at beginning and end, or each “chapter.”

The second point I have also noted before, is that COVID was both a curse and a blessing, in a way. The former is obvious, but the latter has to do mainly with the arts: people stuck at home have written or created fine art more, and filmmakers either were forced to make limited, smaller films with few cast and crew, such as Prince of the Crimson Void (2022), or as a subject matter, for it creating the apocalypse, e.g., Ravage Nation (2022). 

For this film, the stories are 30 years after the apocalypse. As the intro voice-over states, the end starts with COVID in 2019, which developed into the “Meanies” virus in 2025, which wipes out all but 8,000 people. Our tales begin in 2055. So, what we are looking at, is the second form of anthology listed above. The narration is handled by Michael Moutsatsos, who directed Ravage Nation mentioned above.

Phil Herman

For the wraparound, a lone man, Zorack (Phil Herman, curator of these tales and director of the wraparounds) comes across a notebook with some stories in it. He roams the countryside (which looks like it could be either the Jersey Shore or the Pine Barrens) and narrates out loud to himself (hell, I do that too). When his memories – which we see in stark and vague backsplashes – get too much for the lonely guy, he reads the stories in the marble-themed scratcher. What we get to see is the realization of those tales. Whether these stories are supposed to be the writer’s fiction or memories is unclear, and unimportant, but worth noting.

The first of these, “A Broken Promise” (directed by Derek Braasch) is a about a man and his dog (no, not Don Johnson). Rick (Justin Bower) wanders around a lot for food and water, showing kindness to some and killing others by defending himself, while mooning for his late wife, Emma (Lillian Lamour) and infant daughter, seen in flashbacks. Most of the story is of him roaming through some rusty truck graveyards (coolest thing about this one). The story is way longer than it needs be, but it does tug the emotional heartstrings as well as having some nice practical SFX.

Justin Bower, Lucy

In “Bomb Threats” (directed by James Panetta), annoying phone-addicted Katrina (Debbie D, aka Debbie Dee, who also wrote this section, and had appeared in a few Bill Zebub films) is getting ready for a nice vacation the next day, when the titular bombs start a-flyin’ and she’s rightfully a-scared. The Meanie virus is just starting to take hold, so she coerces a business associate, Alvin (Jim Ewald), to let her stay overnight in his bomb shelter (that looks like a garage). I will not say how, but things do not quite work out as planned. I will note that one of the scenes reminds me of a classic image from a particular Hershell Gordon Lewis film in the early 1960s.

Filling in for the Zorack stories are some of his own, that show up occasionally with Herman in a bad blond wig and baseball cap whiningly phoning various people he knows who are in the “turning point” of the Meanie virus, such as much tattooed Kate (Constance Payne), cute Kelly (Alba O’Neill), and his pal, Frank (Carl J. Grasso) who has a thick Long Island accent. I am guessing these segments were filmed during the actual COVID pandemic, because each person’s story is shot individually.

Alba O'Neill

“Forever Man” (directed by Marcelo Fabani) uses some decent animation and SFX (along with some cheesy ones). The main character who does not speak is Frank 21 (Chandra Mouli Nandy), though we hear his inner narration. The area he lives in, post-Meanies, where in this case turns people into zombies rather than maniacs, demands its denizens to sell their organs. In doing this, Frank 21 becomes a cyborg killing machine. I think. To be honest, this segment tried too hard to be artsy in both visuals and dialogue, and it becomes befuddling.

With an interesting concept, “Joel D. Wynkoop’s 187 Times” (directed by Joel D. Wynkoop), James Kirk (Wynkoop) had a wife, Diana (M. Catherine Wynkoop), that was killed, and he spends the titular number of times going back in time from the year 2050 to try and save her. But, of course, he keeps screwing up the timeline. He is aided by an Alexa kind of electronic voice called Aistda (the voice of M. Catherine). In this tale, it also explains how the whole Meanies virus got started. There appears to be snippets from other films, probably made by Wynkoop over the years, which is a nice choice. In one sequence, he goes back to 1977, and I was thinking, dude, while you have the chance, go see the Ramones! But I guess his priorities are different than mine…

A question I have is as follows: It has been a while since the apocalypse, so water and food is understandably scarce. So why are so many still overweight, and especially, why are they clean in both body (including hair) and clothes? You would think washing…anything would be an issue. For example, someone has a non-stained KISS shirt that looks right off the rack, though the Motörhead one appears lived in a bit. While I am at it, why are people scrounging for canned good?. Does no one grow anything? I have a garden and that does pretty well for us most of the year. There is also no leaves or weeds on what looks like freshly mowed lawns, and parked cars are shiny and clean. And there is still electricity and television? Just sayin’, not complaining. These tend to be true across many post-apoc films. There is a lot of inconsistencies through the stories, but then again, if I read this right, they are just stories written in a notebook, so that would explain the differences from tale to tale.

Put together by the same people who did the Horrortales.666 anthology franchise, this goes on longer than it needs be (especially “Broken Promise”), but this is true indie filmmaking with a budget of miniscule proportion. They work both as individual tales and as a collective, which is nice. If you get a kick out of the duct tape level of cinema, as I do, you might find this interesting. Not for anyone who likes cohesive storylines or an artistic flair, but this is solid meat and taters.

This movie is available for $20, which includes postage. It can be acquired through contacting Phil Herman or Joel D Wynkoop on Facebook Messenger. Add it to your post-apoc pile.

IMDB listing HERE

Review: Super Z

Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2023
Images from the Internet

Super Z (aka Super Z: Smart-Ass Zombies!)
Directed by Julien de Volte and Arnaud Tabarly
La Ruche Productions; MVD Visual
80 minutes, 2022 / 2023
www.facebook.com/SuperZ 
www.MVDVisual.com

Zombie-love in the States is obvious, but it is also far flung across the world, such as Train to Busan (2016) in Korea, and in Europe, there is the recent Ever After (EndZeit) (2018) from Germany. Those films, however, are dead serious (pun intended).

On the other hand, there is Super Z, hailing out of France, which is a bloody and gory comedy. There are not too many zombie comedies in general, though there are the likes of Aaah! Zombies!! (aka Wasting Away) and Bong of the Dead (2011), not to mention the infamous Shaun of the Dead (2004), which even predates this release. This feature is based on the directors’ 2014 short film, “The Foodies.”

Audrey Giacomin, iJohan Libéreau, Julien Courbey, Florence Bebic-Veruni

In French (with subtitles), of course, this multi-level story of death, flesh and lust starts in a laboratory called The Purgatory, of a corporation led by Le PDG/The CEO (Jacques Boudet, who has had a long and storied career in French cinema). There is even a picture of himself on his desk. He is assisted in this endeavor by the over the top Le savant fou/The Mad Scientist (Jean-François Gallotte), who gleefully tortures the people/zombies on whom he works. As you may notice, some characters are expressed as their titles or roles, rather than their given names.

But the scientist has taken an extra step on his own and has made them more than just killing and eating machines, he has given them sentience, so they are aware of what is going on and can even talk. However, that is mostly trash talk, taunting like the French guards in Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975), except full of vulgarity and profanity.

Fabian Ara

The main test subjects are a family of four: “father” Gertre (Johan Libéreau), “mother” Stephana (Julien Courbey), and “daughters” Marcelline (Audrey Giacomini) and Georgette (Florence Bebic-Veruni). After they escape the facility, along the way, while having – er – dinner, they manage to turn a young man into one of them, Yvon (Fabien Ara), whom they adopt. The transformation takes only seconds. Yvon confuses me, though; is he supposed to be a teen? He plays his role like a man-child a la Lou Costello or a Jerry Lewis character (remember how popular Lewis was in France?). He is into rap, wears his extended cap sideways, pants hanging below his butt, and has his name on a gold chain. And he’s a bit annoying; no where as interesting as the foursome family. I do have to concede, though, that the “young” daughters are also played by adults.

Sent after them is Le mercinaire/The Mercenary (Lauren Bouhnik) and his cousin, La cousin (Jo Prestia, who also has quite the filmography), out to hunt and kill the escapees. This scenario, in some twisted way, reminds me a bit of Harriet Beecher Stowe’s 1852 novel Uncle Tom’s Cabin, with the hungry foursome as the escaped slaves being Eliza and her family, and Le mercinaire as Simon Legree.

Holed up in a cabin (see?), the extended zombie family fixes it up and feeds of people going by on a nearby walking path in joyous and bloody ways. Some family dinner table scenes are hysterical for both normality and – er – not (more on this later), and yet is extremely and disturbingly full of blood and gore. They plot their revenge against the world of humans, but what happens when one of them becomes infatuated by living, tooth-impaired, Augustine (Marion Mezadorian)? There is a definite Romeo and Juliet aspect to it, including a balcony scene. Smart.

While the excitement lasts throughout, with very little lulls, it also picks up significantly in the third Act when the mercenaries show up at the CEO’s insistence to do away with what he considers a failed experiment(s).

Lauren Bouhnik

You can see the influence of other films throughout, such as an homage to the ending of Mother’s Day (1980), which made me smile. Another interesting aspect of the film is that as absurd as it is, there is also a “normal” aspect of it, such as the zombies drinking wine, smoking, taking drugs, sleeping (and snoring), loving and arguing. I really enjoyed that. To them, even though they despise the living beyond the food aspect, they are not much different in so many ways.

But what is most notable is the gore effects and make-up, which look phenomenal. These were handled by Stéphanie Couste, Harold Levy, Cédric Martin and Vanessa Ricolleau. It does not surprise me it took four people, because there is a lot going on here, from zombie make-up, the gore SFX, and body parts.

Taunting a second time...

Sexually, it is quite crude, with masturbating and zombie sex, among other aspects I will not discuss because I do not want to give too much away. This film just revels in absurdist humor, which is bound to make some laugh, but will also guarantee some will find repulsive in both visuals, comments made by characters, and the degree of wit (mostly low level). But I found it quite fun and full of great moments. Also, their voices are quite growly and screechy, almost as though their voices have been sped up. This is especially true of Stephana. I am grateful for the English subtitles, because even if it was in English, I may have trouble making out the dialogue; however, the subtitles are not the best, being all white, but still appreciated, as I was with the film in general.

IMDB listing HERE

Review: Wolf Hollow

Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2023
Images from the Internet

Wolf Hollow
Directed by Mark Cantu
Mezek Films, Big Bell Productions; Hinds Productions; Cineworx
80 minutes; 2023
#wolfhollow #FollowTheHollow #mezekfilms
#pittsburghfilm #cineworx2023

Of his thirteen films to-date, be it features or shorts, so far, I have seen/reviewed three of them (this will be the fourth), each of a different genre. There was action thriller Elite (2017), post-apocalyptic anger infection Night Zero (2017), and slasher Massacre Academy (2021). This time at bat, it is the lycanthropy field.

While saying it fits into the werewolf canon is true, there are so many horror genres mixed together here in a Horror ghoul-ash. Y’gotcha cabin in the woods, backwoods hunters and murderers, and even the meta-filmmaking (a group shooting a film within the film). The latter with werewolves has been done before as well, such as Wolf Manor (2021). But every film is different, and I am looking forward to this, as a werewolf fan.

Lynn Lowry

Filmed outside Pittsburgh, PA, some of the scenery is quite awe inspiring, showing off the forests and mountains of, I am assuming, Oak Hollow Park. You get to see less of it as time goes on due to it being night, but meanwhile, enjoy.

With a prologue that reflects on themes from both The Howling (1981) and Blade (1998), we are off to a bloody start that had me smiling. A year later, there are two storylines that are bound to converge. First, there is the film crew heading to said Wolf Hollow to make their movie, starring washed up diva Marla Taylor (The Lynn Lowry, of 1971’s I Drink Your Blood, GA Romero’s The Crazies in 1973, Cronenberg’s 1975 Shivers, and more recently, Debbie Rochon’s 2016 Model Hunger, among so many other classics). The second is that a larger township is commandeering a local area – yep, said Wolf Hollow – and plans to kick out the Neuri (the name means the nervous system) family, run by matriarch Evie (The Felissa Rose, most famous as Angela in 1983’s Sleepaway Camp, but has become a major actor/producer in the indie film field). The town leaders are quite obnoxious and condescending about the land grab (i.e., their “tough nuggies” attitude).

Brian Ceponis, Feissa Rose (foreground)

There is tension all around: for the Neuri family: a member of the clan who has run away to New York, Ray (Noah J. Welter) has returned with the young and green film crew (e.g., one just graduated from NYU Film School), bringing additional tension between him and his brother, Bart (Brian Ceponis), who is struggling financially, along with his wife Evie. As for the potential filmmakers, well, it is one argument after another, as they try to placate their spoiled faded star, Marla. I love that many of the strongest characters are women, though it seems to me that even though there tends to be more women victims in horror flicks, they also tend to be the fiercest (check out Carol J. Clover’s amazing book, Men, Women andChain Saws: Gender in the Modern Horror Film). 

With all the arguing going on with both sides and each other, it makes it hard to find a connection with some the characters, who tend to be a bit flat at times, though mostly undefined personalities. But with mishaps and anger comes the night, and the filmmakers are trapped in their trailer while the beasties beat on the door, metaphorically and eventually literally. But that should come as no surprise.

Christina Krakowski

It should be quite apparent to anyone who has a history of watching creature features to figure out who are the werewolves. It starts with a slow burn first half (after the prologue), but then it just spins the dial up. A major saving quality to the film is that once the action really starts, about a third of the way in, it does not let up. It is wolf-brutal with, to paraphrase Arlo, “blood ‘n gore ‘n veins in the teeth.” While there are few surprises throughout the film, and parts are predictable, that does not take away from the fun factor: there are a lot of wolves, though you see one at a time. My guess is that there was only one suit that was used over and over. This would make total sense given most indie’s budget constraints.

That being said the wolfies, designed by Midnight Studios FX, looks great, seeming to be modeled on those in The Howling (no complaints there), with the exception of the head of the lycanthropes, who’s initial change looks more like the human/cat face in Sleepwalkers (1992). The overall gore effects are also quite well done, if sometimes a bit dark (remember, it is night when the action comes).

Noah J. Welter

Most of the main characters are likeable, though some of the cast is almost interchangeable given such little exposition background (more time for action, I guess). Some of the personality standouts include the meta film’s director, Alex Romero (Christina Krakowski) – filmed near Pittsburgh, of course she is named Romero, duh – and her beau, Ray (Noah J. Welter), brother of the head of the Nuri clan. Another role of note is scene stealing Lucky Steve (Brandon Krum), who is the comedy relief of the film crew, and definitely has the best lines. There are a lot of local police who tend to blend into each other, even those at the higher level, but a standout is Officer Mills (Valena Zitello).

The question that nagged me for a while is why Ray brought the crew to Wolf Hollow, whether it was to see family, to get comeuppance to the clan, or was he a Judas Goat. It becomes clear by the end, and I ain’t spillin’ the beans.

It is pretty apparent that the director, Mark Cantu, is a big Wes Craven fan. There are many references to Craven’s cult films, such as the RV trailer-under-attack-by-bloodthirsty-locals as in The Hills Have Eyes (1977), and one of the wounded characters comments, “I’m feeling a little woozy here,” arguably the most requoted line from Scream (1996). I believe Craven would have been proud to have his work referenced here.

IMDB listing HERE