Review: Witchtrap (Special Edition)

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

Witchtrap (aka The Haunted; The Presence)
Directed by Kevin S. Tenney
Moonstone Entertainment; Cinema Plus; CGO Pictures; Mentone Pictures; Magnum Entertainment; MVD Rewind Collection
https://mvdb2b.com/s/WitchtrapSpecialEdition/MVD12465BR
92 minutes, 1989 / 2023

One of my favorite ghost sub-genres is when a group of parapsychologist scientists go to a haunted house to investigate it. No, not like those silly “ghost hunting” shows on cable, but films with a darker turn, such as The Haunting (1963, based on Shirley Jackson’s excellent 1959 novel, The Haunting of Hill House), or The Legend of Hell House (1973, based on the 1971 book Hell House, by one of my favorite authors, Richard Matheson).

For Witchtrap, the script was written in 6 days and shot in Fairfield, California in 17. A nice quickie production, most likely designed for the VHS market, in which the second highest of the two top sellers at video stores was horror. That is why so many films came out in the 1980s. This one was just as the move towards laser discs and DVD was starting.

This is definitely a child of its time, when the demographics were geared more towards teen boys and young men, when women in these films were idealized and sexualized beyond the scope of the story. For example, every female character introduced, even the lead scientist, is either wearing next to nothing, high heels, or topless. Yes, there is a bathing and a shower scene (to be honest, the later is part of the story rather than just gratuitous), of course; at least one was mandatory at the time: wet women’s bodies were, if you pardon the cliché, the money shot.

The object of the investigation is to photograph and exorcise an evil ghost, hired by Devon Lauder (director Kevin Tenney) the nephew of the dead warlock (not witch) Avery Lauder (JP Luebsen; d. 2022). Devon wants to turn it into a B&B, but there is just that nasty and murderous spirit in the way, which is proven in the prologue.

Judy Tatum

The leader of the team is parapsychologist Dr. Agnes Goldberg (Judy Tatum) who is with her husband Felix (Rob Zapple) a mental medium. Next up is redheaded physical medium, stately Whitney O’Shea (Kathleen Bailey), followed by video technician Ginger Kowowski (the Linnea Quigley, top Scream Queen at that time, in an extended cameo and the shower scene). For security, along for the ride (and paycheck) is obnoxious boss Frank Murphy (Jack W. Thompson), who mentions that his beer is “as flat as my ex-wife’s chest,” and his two underlings, stereotypical for the time sauntering and horny (right down to often self lip-licking) for Ginger, Levi Jackson (Clyde Talley II), and the comedy relief, sceptic and sarcastic Tony Vincente (James W. Quinn) who could be the model for Chandler Bing; he really does have the best lines, including lots of references to other films and television shows, such as stating “Good night, Gracie.”

It takes 20 minutes of exposition (Act 1) for the team to get to the Lauter House (aka “Slaughter House”), where they meet the big, slow, and creepy – natch – groundskeeper Elwin (Hal Havins). Whose side is he on is the question – in genre films, it really can go either way – though it is obvious he is also a horndog. That is the way of films of this period: the women are either smart or bimbos, though dress the latter, and the men are either (but rarely) smart and obnoxious in one way or another. There is also a nice touch of racism beyond the stereotyping, such as Frank saying, “You’re gonna do what I say or I’m gonna kick your black ass down those stairs,” to witch – I mean which Levi responds, “Try it and I’ll tap dance on your ass like Bojangles Robinson.” But I digress…

Linnea Quigley, Clyde Talley II

This has been noted that the acting is quite wooden, but there is a reason in this case: as IMDB states, “all of the dialogue and sound effects had to be re-recorded in post-production because of a mix-up with the live sound recording.” All the dialogue is flat (same distance from the microphone) and it is hard to match emotions when you are trying to sync the sound to the screen. I was especially amused by the punches during a fight scene; not as “wooden” as in a Shaw Bros. release, but it does resonate like the same sound effect for each punch.

Kathleen Bailey

Of course, our intrepid troupe gets picked off one by one (nice body count with enjoyable blood and relative gore SFX by Judy Yonemoto). The issue for me is that each time it is about to happen, it is telegraphed in two ways. First, Whitney goes into extreme spasms whenever the ghost/warlock is about to do his due diligence. The second is when the music suddenly changes to an intense and dissonant string-based screech. The kills are still fun to watch, though, and a bit imaginative. There are also some decent jump scares, as was the trend at the time.

James W. Quinn

Starting off the Blu-ray extras is a group commentary track with: director Kevin Tenney, producer Dan Duncan, cinematographer Tom Jewett and actor Hal Havins. Fortunately, they kept their egos in the pockets and rarely talk over each other, and the obviously like each other, which comes across. There are lots of anecdotes, but much of it is a study on filmmaking that is not overly technical.

JP Luebsen

There are a series of interviews starting with Tenney (24 min), who also directed cult classics Witchboard (1986) and Night of the Demons (1988) before this one. He actually tells some interesting stories about the lead-up and making of the film that is not just the standard fare, including self-deprecating moments and insightful anecdotes. Next up is Linnea Quigley (14 min) who discusses how she got into the genre (though does not mention some of her earlier classic films), working with the director, and how much she loves acting in horror films (lucky for us). Then there is cinematographer Tom Jewett (15 min) discussing his career and has a bit more technical info. Last is with special effects supervisor Tassimo Baur (17 min), explaining his role with stunts, shootings, and explosions, for example. All the interviews have clips from the film, and they are solo talking head style, but the content is better than the form.

Added is the VHS version of Witchtrap (92 mins, with some of the extra gore removed thanks to the ratings board that wanted to give it an “X”). I did not watch this, only the uncut main film, not seen until the Blu-ray/DVD release. Last is a mostly on-set photo gallery and the original trailer, as well as other company coming attractions of films from the period. On the physical side, there is a reversible cover artwork and a really nice collectible poster, and for the technical, this is a “High Definition (1080p) presentation of the main feature in its original 1.85:1 aspect ratio, scanned and restored in 2K in 2016 from the 35mm Interpositive.” The audio is LPCM 2.0 Mono, and there are optional English subtitles.

Considering the budget and some of my comments, this is actually a surprisingly enjoyable film nearly all the way through. The effects are effective, it is shot well, and as is mentioned often in the commentary and interviews, the lighting throughout is quite noteworthy with its mixing of shadow and light.

This fits in well with the pantheon of 1980s horror cinema, despite its low budget, and even though it was released at the end of the decade, its heart is definitely on a VHS shelf, though seeing the full, uncut version is special.

IMDB listing HERE

Documentary Review: The Dogman Triangle: Werewolves in the Lone Star State

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

The Dogman Triangle: Werewolves in the Lone Star State
Directed by Seth Breedlove
Small Town Monsters; 1091 Pictures
74 minutes, 2023
www.smalltownmonsters.com/
www.facebook.com/smltownmonsters
#IndieHorrorFilms #DogmanTriangle #SmallTownMonsters #Cryptid #werewolf

Growing up watching the classic Universal monster films as a kid, creatures hold a soft spot for me. This is especially true for werewolves, for some reason. Where is Larry Talbot when you need him?

But director Seth Breedlove goes beyond into the realm of cryptids, urban legends that posits monsters like Bigfoot and the Jersey Devil are possibly real. While I do not believe so, I tend to enjoy stories about cryptids, and especially Breedlove’s take on them.

He has travelled around the country looking for them, and as far as were-creatures, he covered this topic in the more general American Werewolf (2022). For this one, he ends up more specifically in the second largest state in the Union, Texas, searching for the “Dogman” legend, a branch of werewolf. It would be easy to make a joke about ZZ Top at this point, but I will move on…

Aaron Deese

Based on the findings of author Aaron Deese’s 2023 book, The Dogman Triangle (he is also former Editor in Chief of Paranormality Magazine), Deese joins paranormal expert, author, podcaster (“Into the Fray Radio”), perennial Small Town Monsters host, and often Havana hat wearer Shannon LeGro on a tour of the Deep South, focusing on three points in the State (hence the “triangle” part), San Antonio, Dallas, and Houston, covering about 700 square miles. Each “point” is a chapter title.

It is important to note that though the word “werewolf” is bandied about because there is no official categorization, the term “dogman” is more accurate; in other words, it is not a person who converts into a wolf as in the lore, but rather falls into cryptozoology as a large wolf that can walk on two legs like a human. As with many cryptid monsters, the descriptions vary from “eyewitnesses” to the perceived form. I find this somewhat naturalistic version more interesting that the supernatural one in regard to transformations.

Shannon LeGro

There are three levels of observers scattered throughout the documentary. The first is the retelling of the folklore legends, usually dealing with the late 1800s to the 1950s, such as storytellers Ken Gerhard, Lyle Blackburn, and Nick Redfern from Britain. Then there are the third- and second-hand stories of people who knew people (e.g., neighbor, dad) that had a sighting, but did not have them on their own, like JoJo Santana and James Witter. Finally, there are those who claim they saw the dogman (or something like it), including Dawn and Michael Lucker, both of whom have different descriptions of size (a difference of 4 feet in height when upright). Worth noting, also, is Nick Losoya, an Apache who talks about a more skinwalker/loupagrou legend of the Indigenous people.

I like that the documentary addresses the possibilities of misidentification by the witnesses, such as a mangy bear (which can walk on its hind legs) or a wolf-dog hybrid (there are technically no wolves in Texas, but they explain it here), but fall back to it being a canid creature.

Deese, LeGro

Another direction they investigate that was keen to my interest was the “after effect” of a sighting, such as that of Tex Wesson, who suffered from PTSD for a while afterwards, and he is not the only one who mentions that in the film. In the many cryptid docs I have seen, this is an area that I do not remember being explored much, and honestly, I would love to see an entire film on just that: the psychology of the effects of seeing a cryptozoology subject in the flesh.

As for “tangible proof,” there is some given, such as footprints (though the two shown are totally different), a couple of grainy videos, and an audio track of howling. What we are mostly presented with are some incredible artwork by Johnathan Dodd (one of the financial supporters of this film, along with many, many others, is Swamp Thing illustrator Stephen R. Bissette) and animation by Chris Sealf. Also worth noting is the eerie music soundtrack by Brandon Dalo.

Considering the sheer volume of guns in the state (the most registered arms at 21 per 1,000 people), how are these things not hunted, extinct, and mounted on a mantlepiece like a deer head?

Fortunately for us, there is the promise that “Aaron Deese will return…” at the end of the credits. Goody!

Available on Cable VOD and Digital HD, as well as 1091 Pictures, iTunes, Amazon Prime Video, Vudu and FandangoNOW.

IMDB listing HERE

Review: The Sound of Summer

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

The Sound of Summer
Directed by Guy (aka Guy Pierce, Guy Fragments)
Sculpting Fragments; Unearthed Films; MVD Visual
75 minutes, 2022
www.unearthedvideo.com
https://mvdb2b.com/s/TheSoundOfSummer/UN-1150

In James Clavell’s 1975 opus, Shōgun, he posits, “The Japanese have six faces and three hearts.” Society is incredibly different in the present than in feudal times when the novel took place, and life has become more in sync with the West. But when viewing art cinema, even in the Asia extreme cinema category, this quote can become more than just a philosophy.

A lonely young woman (cute Kaori Hoshino) – whom I will refer to as Her, as no names are given for the characters – works in as a barista in a coffee shop during a sweltering summer in Japan (with English subtitles, though there is minimal dialogue). It is 102F/39C and it seems no one has air conditioning. It reminds me of that episode of “The Twilight Zone” called “The Midnight Sun” (1961), where the Earth is moving closer to the flaming orb. One can almost feel the heat radiating off the monitor.

Kaori Hoshino

Because it is summer, the large flying insects called cicadas (there is a variation of the species in the American Southeast) are in large numbers and if you do not know, they make a loud rubbing noise, usually through the night. That sound is the source of the film’s title. Unnervingly, this is keeping our heroine awake, along with the heat. Lack of sleep and high temperatures can have a negative effect on one’s mental health.

Into the coffee shop comes a sweaty middle-aged man with a mask, a net, and a couple of cases filled with cicadas. He begins coming in often, each time dressed identically, and with the same containers full of captured critters.

Shinya Hankawa

As the summer wears on and the heat is unrelenting, Her breaks out in itchy rashes and scratches herself bloody, and begins slipping from reality, believing that the “Cicada Man” (Shinya Hankawa) as he is called by her and her coworker (Kiyomi Kametani) is visiting her at night, and infecting her with cicada eggs.

Being released by Unearthed Films, it should come as no surprise this leads into body horror, as she scratches and starts to remove skin, with lots of blood and gore for those who are drawn to that. The practical effects are done by Susumu Nakatani, who does an amazing job at bringing out the squeamish body manipulations.

And what makes this arthouse fare? Well, part of it is the very, very slow burn that starts the story, and with the high temperatures, the term “burn” feels appropriate. Once the Cicada Man visits Her at night, or perhaps in her dreams, is when the red sauce begins to show and flow. All this is underscored (literally) by the soundtrack by synth composer Microchip Terror.

The story and look of this are quite plain and basic, without arty shots or dialogue, despite the wild and swirling camerawork in the third act, but it still retains a certain pace that elevates it to a higher plain. There is also a question of psychology feeding into this style: is Her infected with cicada eggs, or is it all in her mind, twisted by the continuous heat?

Keita Kusaka

In almost The Fly (1986)-like fashion, she picks at her body bit by bit, pulling out what she believes are hatchling cicadas. The doctor (Keita Kusaka) accuses her of delusions of parasitosis, where one is convinced that they are infested by parasites. Considering her physical condition, I do not understand why the doc does not have her committed, or at the very least to the Emergency Room. But that would be the end of the story, so it soldiers on.

The big reveal of the Cicada Man is intense, again reminiscent of The Fly, but the question remains of how much of it is reality, and to what level is it imagined. Either way, it looks amazing.

The extras on the Blu-ray start with the “Behind the Scenes” (45 min) that is a mixture of “how it was shot” and mucking around by the filmmakers and cast, but my favorite parts were the application of the SFX make-up. On “Tokyo Talkshow” (34 min) is the director Guy, cult genre director Shozin Fukui, and the two directors of the film LOUD, after the on-stream premiere of both The Sound of Summer and LOUD. Last is the Japanese Premiere (42 min), which introduces three members of the principle cast and director to the audience. I have found many times these kinds of pre- or post-screening interviews tend to have terrible audio. Here, however, it is nice and crisp, and there are easy-to-read subtitles, as they are mostly in Japanese. There is also a trailer for this and another Guy short.

The director, Guy, is actually a native of Britain who has been living in Japan for several years and is fluent in the language. In this being his first full-length feature, he brings the sensibilities of both to the project, giving it a slightly different touch than from either. Oh, I would still label this under “Asian Extreme” (yeah, there are people who do not like that term, though it is accurate), but the plain and simple structure is totally Western influenced. It helps that he was aided by his co-conspirator of the film, Dave Jackson who directed Cat Sick Blues (2016). 

Honestly, I do not necessarily have a fear of insects per se (though I am not fond of them on my body or floating around my head), this was a bit extreme on the effects of the insects, not of the creatures themselves. While a fun ride, once it kicks into gear, consider yourself forewarned if you suffer from entomophobia, sometimes known as insectophobia.

MDB listing HERE

Review: The Tank

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

The Tank
Directed by Scott Walker
Corner Stone; Ajax Pictures; GFC Films; Happy Dog Entertainment; Ingenious Media; Well Go USA Entertainment
100 minutes, 2023
https://wellgousa.com/films/tank
www.hiyahtv.com
#TheTank @WellGoUSA

To be honest, I found the title a bit confusing: an armed military vehicle, or something like a septic tank? Well, it is kinda-sorta more like the second. But what it holds is hardly bodily discards. Remember, this is a horror film. What is more, it is a creature feature, always one of my favorite genres.

After a quick prologue, we meet lizard/amphibian expert Jules (Luciane Buchanan) and Ben (Matt Whelan), who have a young daughter, Reia (Zara Nausbaum), and own a struggling pet shop in Oakland, CA. Much to their surprise, they have inherited a property on the coast of Oregon. What is even more startling is that this was filmed in New Zealand. You would never know it by the lack of accents and the place descriptions, though much of the cast is from there. Cool.

Luciane Buchanan

It would not be revealing anything to say the three head up north to check the place out, to see whether they want to sell the house that has been vacant (of humans) since 1946. I mean, otherwise this film would be about 10 minutes, right? It is right on the Pacific (hence, “the coast”) and the view is spectacular (I drove down the coast of Oregon a few years ago, and can attest to its beauty), but it is surrounded on all the other sides by woods, and it is a long drive up a crap road to get to it (once you get past the fallen tree across the road, so you have to walk part of it and expose yourself to what lies beneath).

Once we finally get through all the exposition of the first part of the film, things begin to get a bit bumpy. They find the lid to the titular buried water tank/well beside the house, which leads to a series of caves (which reminded me of the well at Barnaby’s house in 1934’s March of the Wooden Soldiers…too obscure?). There is something making screaming noises and that creaking sound that has been appearing in so many films since Ju-on (The Grudge, 2002) – or was it used first in Ringu (The Ring, 1998)? – reverberating through the whole house. Speaking of which, and I have said this before because it is such a common trope, someone walking through an environment (in this case house) in the dark with a light, should never be longer than two minutes, or the tension dissipates into annoyance.

The body-suit creature looks great (not CGI, as well), designed by Weta Workshop and donned by contortionist-extraordinaire Regina Hegemann. That almost makes the whole thing worth it by itself. Not too flashy and unrealistic, but a specimen of evolution.

This film definitely has some issues, beyond that it would be a much better 80-minute film than one that is 100 minutes. For example, there is too much projection of what is to come a few times, such as Jules explaining about reactions of amphibians to their surroundings, early on in the storyline; there are at least three or four that I caught.

Buchanan, Matt Whelan

But what I found most egregious, was how many fights with the creature went on underwater. Sure, the camera followed them down and was shot from under the surface, but the liquid was so murky, I could not make heads or tails of what was happening other than movement. Did the human succumb? Did the creature get polished off? Could not tell until the conclusion of the incident when one or the other raised their heads above the liquid level.

A smart aspect was to set the brunt of the story in 1968, when there were no cell phones or computers, though considering how isolated was the location, there probably would not have been service anyway. And since no one had lived in the house for over 20 years, there was no working telephone.

 

Buchanan, Zara Nausbaum

Another plus is the cast: Whelan and especially Buchanan fill their shoes well and have some chemistry. Nausbaum does not really have much to do, other than cry, whimper, and scream, but she does that quite well.

I am fine with the low body count (this could almost be considered more of a thriller than a horror), but for those that are taken over to meet Osiris, the blood and gore look superb.

The release is definitely a mixed bag, considering how I felt about watching it. I love a creature feature film, generally, and was not disappointed by the beastie, nor the basic storyline – despite its many “tells” – but it took too long to get its ass in gear.

The director and writer, Scott Walker (not a member of the Walker Brothers, who sang “The Sun Ain’t Gonna Shine Anymore”…I bet he is tired of hearing that), has one other feature under his belt previously, The Frozen Ground (2013), starring Nicolas Cage and John Cusack, which was well received. I am looking forward to Walker’s work going forward, even though he seems to put out a film every decade or so.

Oh, and stick around for partway through the credits.

IMDB listing HERE

Review: Eat the Rich

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

Eat the Rich
Directed by Kermit Merl Key
Frog Lab
www.facebook.com/FrogLabLLC
78 minutes, 2023

Over the past few years, I have seen tee-shirts that read “Eat the Rich.” While not a cannibal myself, I understand the deeper meaning of this slogan. Now let us add a little Covid and some H.P. Lovecraft, whaddya say?

This was filmed in Indiana during the Covid crisis (yes, it was real), and right away during the b-roll’d credits, lots of people are wearing masks. Cool cloth types, not the n95 medical ones. I still wear mine in crowded places, but I digress…

Senator Jim Richardson (Raymond Kester) is a right wing racist, homophobic, and misogynistic jackhole Congressman who harasses wait staff in a restaurant (for example) and uses words like “cuc” about people wearing masks, even if it is mandated. Total DeSantis-ville mentality. Less than five minutes in, and I hope some comeuppance is in store for this yahoo, as I feel about any of these morons going around annoying workers who have no say in policy and especially if they put it online. But again, I digress…

Statuesque Evie Elkins (Morgan Bow), a single mom, works in a dead-end job as a waitress for a tyrant boss and lives with her parents. Money is tight for her and her friends as well. They are Joey (Dakota Bruton) and her level-headed boyfriend Mark (Evan Lahee), and Evie’s new boyfriend Adam (Cody Alexander). They all hang out on Zoom playing Dungeons and Dragons, and complain about their fates, the mandates, and having to deal with MAGAs in the workplace, as Joey states.

Adam’s politics are as far Left as Richardson’s is to the Right, spewing a Marxist-kinda vibe and jibe, saying things like “plutocratic oligarchy.” And now he has done gone and kidnapped Richardson and taken him to a hideaway house (cabin in the woods?) with a hot tub, dragging the other three into danger with the law, and so much more. As we see in the very opening, there is something “different” about Adam. Thing is with kidnapping anyone, especially politicians, someone must end up dead, either the kidnappers or the kidnappee. Way of the world, and especially genre films.

Yes, there is some deep shit politics going on here, but it takes the side of the people who are struggling, which thanks to the Trump tax cuts for the one percent, high costs of medical care in the middle of a pandemic, and just trying to survive, this is not about power – well, perhaps it is for Adam – but more about the desperation of the working class in a country in which those in the money and power (usually the same) spew hatred towards society’s base. I do not mean for this to sound like a screed, though it is plain which political side I am on.

This is obviously micro-budget (for which I support) and it could have easily have just been a tale of a kidnapping, a la Death and the Maiden (1994), but more like SheepSkin (2013), this takes it to a horror level with a beastie (the title kinda gives it away, as does the prologue, but I will not reveal the details).

This makes me think of the flip of the attempt to kidnap Democratic Michigan governor Gretchen Whitmer, where in this case it is Lefties doing the deed rather than the Right’s attempt. Perhaps that almost-taking inspired this story?

When the film starts, what confused me is the added visual glitches and (sometimes literal) noise added to the film, without it being found footage. But it is not just a stylistic choice: as things become clearer, the more unnerving it gets (a good thing), the more it becomes a character, representing chaos and entropy.

Once the social strata commentary stops and the woo part of the story begins, the action certainly picks up.

The film looks good, employing some filters to give moods, or a deep blue one to represent night. It all works together well. The digital SFX are, honestly, quite cheesy looking, such as some electric flashes looking like it came from a 1980s low budget sci-fi film. Again, this is a micro-budgeter, so it is more the meaning than the demonstration.

This is the director’s first feature, and while it has some issues here and there, such as being weighed down a bit by philosophy and social commentary, the story itself is enjoyable, and just from viewing this, I can tell that there is some good work coming out of Key going forward. This is definitely a solid start.

Can be found free on Tubi HERE

IMDB listing HERE

Review: Mad Heidi

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

Mad Heidi
Directed by Johannes Hartmann; Sandro Klopfstein
Swissploitation Films; A Film Company; SRF (Swiss Radio and Television); Raven Banner Entertainment
92 minutes, 2022 / 2023
www.madheidie.com
www.facebook.com/madheidimovie
www.instagram.com/madheidimovie/

Before there was Pippi Longstocking (1945), before Laura Ingalls (Little House on the Prairie, 1932), and previous to Anne Shirley (Anne of Green Gables, 1908), there was Heidi, first published in 1880 by Johanna Spyri. In this story, Heidi has gone from an innocent and yodeling 5-year-old mountain girl into a strong, angry 24-year-old woman. She is a badass.

From the moment I saw the trailer for Mad Heidi, I knew I wanted – perhaps needed – to see this. Filmed in Switzerland, this is apparently a new subgenre being referred to (by its producers) as Swissploitation. Gotta love it. Mostly in English, there is minimal Swiss German, as well.

Alice Lucy

So, this grindhouse release cannot – and should not – be taken seriously, as it is an extremely broad and violent comedy. Just what the doctor ordered. Films of this nature tend to be called “cheesy,” and in this case, it is quite purposeful, as I will explain later. The film goes out of its way to give it a 1980s release feel (a good start!), right down to the opening credits, and relying on a bunch of different genres throughout, some of which will be noted below in brackets.

Through the prologue and credits, we learn that Switzerland is taken over by Nazi-esque (right down to the Swiss Cross red armband) regime of President Meili (Casper Van Dien, of 1997’s Starship Troopers, sporting a comically-German accent) – aka, “Our Very Swiss Leader” – a cut-throat dystopian dictator who is not afraid to quash a protest through armaments. He also owns the only permissible cheese factory in the country, with the slogan, “Strength through Meili’s Cheese.” Any other brand is illegal, and burned, while the sellers are executed in the street. He is brutally aided by Kommandant Knorr (Max Rüdlinger) – sometimes the “K” is not silent – who says, as he is torturing someone in a dairy-related way, “I love the smell of cheese in the morning!”

Casper Van Dien

There is an interesting mix of Nazi-ism, and what is going on in the States right now. For example, there is a negative “other” branded on the lactose-intolerant who cannot eat cheese, reflecting what is going on with the LGBTQ+ and Trans communities. Republicanism is reflected a lot here, not to mention Meili’s tendency to wear all red clothing. His plan is to take over the world…cheese market.

Meanwhile, there is a grown-up Heidi (relative newcomer Alice Lucy), living in the Alps with her grandfather, Alpöhi (David Schofield). While Heidi seems to be unaware of what is going on in the village, gramps is more conscious. Part of Heidi’s distraction is her love interest [sexploitation], the godfather of illegal cheese, Goat Peter (Kal Matsena). He is pimpin’ his goat cheese in bricks in his white fur coat [blaxploitation] to underworldly figures. See, purposefully silly and smile worthy.

David Shofield

After some tragedies, our feisty heroine is arrested, and sent to a stern prison with Klara (Almar G. Sato), run by an even sterner warden, Fräulein Rottweiler (Katja Kolm) [women in prison] and her sadistic right hand who really enjoys giving a cattle prod, Lutz (Rebecca Dyson-Smith). In the Mengele-ish role is Dr. Schwitzgebel (Pascal Ulli), the Chief Cheese Scientist, out to rid the world of the lactose intolerant (reminiscent of Scott Atlas, Trump’s anti-vax COVID advisor). Naturally, the only food there is cheese (reminds me of a line said by Maude on “All in the Family”: “It’s Cream of Wheat and cheese; it’s light but it binds”). His goal is to form a “perfect” cheese to create a cheese army (think of zombies or Orcs).

Of course, after Heidi escapes and does some kung fu training, she becomes a warrior that is bound to influence a whole bunch of Halloween cosplay outfits. And rightfully so. I will not go into any detail about the fight to save Switzerland, but man, it is bloody and fun. And I mean some really nice albeit cartoonish gore that will have any gorehound cheering.

Max Rudinger

While there is a timeless feel to the film, such as “the new,” Goat Peter referring to Heidi as “Babygirl,” and “the old,” dial phones, it is definitely steeped in the ‘80s, with cassette boom boxes, mad scientist laboratories, explosions, bizarre opening animation and CGI, and everything being excessive.

The scenery is nothing short of stunning. Mountains, switchback roads with enormous drops, green valleys, bridges, and the like. So beautiful.

Kal Matsena

Goofy, but smart and obviously made by a group that are hardcore cinephiles, with influences and reflections of the likes of Scanners (1981), Cool Hand Luke (1967), High Anxiety (1977), the subgenre of The Big Bird Cage (1972), The Human Tornado (1976), Sergio Leone’s spaghetti westerns (including some of the score sounding like Ennio Morricone), Star Wars (1977), Crocodile Dundee (1986), Spartacus (1960), and, of course, The Sound of Music (1965). I am sure there are some I missed.

The acting is also reflective of the period it is honoring, with over-the-top dialogue infusing the over-emoting and facial expressions (Van Dien, especially and purposefully). Plus, there is one speech that sounds like it could have been pointed directly to the information deprived MAGA followers.

Katja Kolm

One of the notable aspects of this film is that it is completely independently funded, shot, and distributed. The contributor section of the acknowledgements is almost as long as the rest of the end credits.

Damn, this is a fun film. I highly recommend it to those who like ‘80s cinema, Tarantino, well-written action comedies, and just a need to let it all loose. Very satisfying from beginning to conclusion. Or is it not really the end of the story?

IMDB listing HERE

Review: Smart House

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

Smart House
Directed by John Oak Dalton
Midwest Film Venture; ITN Studios
www.itnfilms.net/
76 minutes, 2023

Director John Oak Dalton is known more as a screenwriter (many involving sharks and the Polonia Brothers), but this is only his third directorial effort, after The Girl in the Crawlspace (2018) and Scarecrow County (2019), but both exceeded their budget and are well worth the watch.

Technology has always given way to genres in the arts. For example, the atomic age led to a glut of sci-fi novels and giant creature features like Them (1954) or Godzilla: King of the Monsters (1956), VHS gave us a proliferation of giallo and slashers, and the internet the likes of Unfriended (2014). Even Covid led to smaller casts (Quarantine Girl, 2020) or the use of Zoom (Host, 2020).

Now with the advent of Artificial Intelligence (AI), a newer genre rises of technology, more personal than the fantastical like the Terminator franchise. For example, recently there was a film called Motion Detected (2022) https://indiehorrorfilms.blogspot.com/2023/05/review-motion-detected.html that dealt with a “smart house,” which still had a supernatural element to it. And now, there is Smart House, which takes out the metaphysical and gives us pure evil AI.

Iabou WIndimere

The focus of the story is Mari (Iabou Windimere), a woman who has been harassed by her violent ex-, Shawn (Joe Kidd). She is now alone in a house run by a Siri type of table device called Cassandra (voiced by the Brinke Stevens in that distinctive, smoky voice of hers) that was designed by her ex-hacker father, Cordell (Tom Cherry). Cassandra has some glitches to it, and is not calling Mari by the name of Clytemnestra, but rather Mary or Murry.

Mari’s profession is as an online influencer, on a very weird show where she brushes her hair and talks in a whisper (which is supposed to trigger an autonomous sensory meridian response, or ASMR). I have never understood stuff like that; too esoteric for me. I like plain and simple, like punk over prog. As she does her program, be sure to read the scrawl of “live” viewer comments on the left; some are positive and others not so nice, as is probably accurate. And they are humorous in their trolling.

Anyway, Cassandra has been acting weird and not following requests in increasingly annoying ways (vacuums going in the middle of the night, for example). Over a short time, Cass is in control, or rather another hacker has – er – hacked into the system, locking Mari in with specific and every increasingly hazardous requests. What I do not understand on all genre films where doors are locked and they are “trapped”… why not a chair through the window to get out, if you are threatened?

Erin Hoodlebrink, Tom Cherry

Like the documentary “Don’t F**k with Cats: Hunting an Internet Killer” (2019), can the audience or others help poor vexed Mari escape her doom and save her podcast? Will the trolls win out and reduce her “numbers”?

The film addresses several issues, such as the power of influencers online, and their lack of it in the real world. It also shows the duality of the level of commitment of the audience, and the sheer banality of anger and hatred (trolling). It also examines just how much we give up of our autonomy with the “convenience” of automation. A professor of mine said that every technology eventually does exactly opposite of what it was supposed to do in the first place, such as the internet was supposed to bring us all together, and instead we sit on our butts by ourselves, online, even in the company of others. In some ways, Smart House addresses that.

Mari is trapped not only by Cassandra, but by the image of herself as an influencer, not even being her own self, but rather a whispering hair brusher. Singer-songwriter Christine Lavin has a song called “Prisoner of Their Hairdos.” which addresses this issue, as well.

Additionally, this is what I would also call a Covid-related release, as there are many characters in the film, but in only two instances do two meet face to face. Everyone else is either on the phone, the internet audience, or voices on the Dark Web.

Another side fact is that of the three films Dalton has directed, this is the first one he has not written. Despite the desperation going on, it is not as emotionally deep as the previous two as far as emotional turmoil levels. Mari is strongly put-upon during the night, but the lasting trauma of Dalton’s previous films was palpable. This one was still traumatic, don’t get me wrong, but the cut is not as deep as, say, in The Girl in the Crawlspace.

There is no sex, nudity, or gore, and yet the story line is enough to keep one interested. Obviously, this was filmed in December (2022?) due to the Christmas lights up everywhere, which is never addressed in the events or by the characters.

The computer graphics that are used are fun, but I was especially impressed by those attached to the opening credits. I found it fascinating. Being a low budget release, there is also a nice use of stock footage (some people have the same yellowish glow filter that past – and hopefully future – failed politician Kari Lake uses, which made me laugh).

As I have said before, Dalton is part of the Dayton, OH film group, who often use the same actors and cast, with varying degrees (e.g., Iabou has been in all of Dalton’s films, and many in Henrique Couto’s as well). It is nice to see familiar faces as well as some new ones. Of course, some are just voices here on the ‘net.

I am always happy to see a John Oak Dalton film, even if it is just a screenplay, especially when collaborating with Couto (who produced Smart House and was cinematographer), an excellent filmmaker in his own right. I will be happy to see what comes next for Dalton.

IMDB listing HERE

Trailer HERE

Review: Day Zero

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

Day Zero
Directed by Joey De Guzman
Reality MM Studios; Regal Entertainment; Well Go USA Entertainment
82 minutes, 2022 / 2023
https://wellgousa.com/films/day-zero
www.hiyahtv.com
#DayZero @WellGoUSA

This release is not to be confused with Night Zero (2017), as Day Zero also goes for the almost-zombie throat.

Remember back in the late 1960s and early ‘70s when the Philippines was a place that released numerous “B” horror releases (many starring John Ashley; d. 1997), be they cheesy, such as Mad Doctor of Blood Island (1968) and The Twilight People (1972)? 

Well, this has shown the quality has quite improved for Filipino fright flicks (presented in Tagalog, Filipino, sign language, and some English, with easy to read English subtitles) over the years, and are still cheesy fun, but a lot more sophisticated, professional looking, and relatively make more narrative sense (relative to the topic at hand).

Brandon Vera

As the prologue tells us, there is an outbreak of dengue fever “also known as break-bone fever, a viral infection that spreads from mosquitoes to people” (paraphrased from Wikipedia). But like Covid, for this imagining, it has mutated into turning people into (fast) flesh-biting zombie-ish creatures; they are not into eating as much as biting and infecting, sort of like Korea’s Train to Busan (2016). While they are merely hyper-infected, they look like classic zombies; the make-up is incredibly well done. Though they can run, they move quite spasmodically and only communicate through screams. It can seem a mix of [Pick a time of day] of the Living Dead and …28 [pick a timeframe] Later, with a bit of [*REC] (2007) thrown in for good measure. And of course, we cannot forget the granddaddy of all violent bite infection flicks, Rabid (1977).

Our central character is the heavily tattooed former U.S. elite soldier Ramon “Emon” Marasigan (Brandon Vera, aka “The Truth”; retired Filipino-American World Kickboxing Association [WKA] Super Heavyweight Champion, ONE Championship Heavyweight World Champion, WEC 13 Heavyweight Grand Prix Champion, and inducted in the Grappler's Quest Hall of Fame). He is in a Filipino prison for aggravated assault. Hell, he is so big, he could cripple me with a strong stare.

Mary Jean Lastimosa

His estranged wife, Sheryl (Mary Jean Lastimosa) and young, deaf daughter, Jane (Freya Fury Montierro) wait in what looks like some overcrowded poor area at a seven-floor walk-up apartment building. Due to the outbreak, Emon breaks out (see what I did there?) of prison with his friend Timoy (Pepe Herrera). Meanwhile, Sheryl gets separated from Jane in the apartment melee. It was pretty obvious that the story would be the quest of the three finding each other again.

Also understandable, thankfully, is that there will be a lot of fighting by Emon, be it prisoners, zombies, or what all. And it certainly does not fail in that regard: MMA-style moves, crude objects (e.g., boards), and eventually tactical armory (see the trailer).

Pepe Herrera

The cinematography by Mo Zee is quite well done, with some camera effects that work well with the storyline and keeps the eye on the screen. This is a gross generalization, but Asian cinema really does present action scenes with pizazz.

Vera acts his role well, albeit mostly stoic or angry (though there are some emotional moments), but most of the major cast, including Herrera and especially Lastimosa, project their fear and angst well without it being cartoonish. Most of the action, once Emon and Timoy get out of prison, is set in the apartment building (hence the [*REC] reference), giving a feeling of grime, purposeful bad lighting (no electricity) though easy to see for the viewer, and a sense of claustrophobia. The single location helps with the budget, and I respect that, as well as “locks” the viewer into the locale. The set design for these scenes is excellent.

So is the SFX, which uses great prosthetics, and while there is some CGI, most of it is practical. For those interested, like me, there is a lot of it spread throughout the film. Technically, there are three acts, but each is ruthless.

While this is a relatively serious film, there is some subtle humor that occasionally crops up, almost like easter eggs, such as one zombie wearing a tee that says, “Vin Scully is my homeboy”: baseball is huge in the Philippines. Also, as with most sidekicks, Timoy is a bit of a comic relief, but hardly a stereotypical screw-up.

There is an underlying premise that not all monsters are – er – monsters. While the band of survivors get picked off one by one, there is also brutality brought by grief and anger. Who needs to be infected to become violent when someone has lost a loved one? I believe that characterization is a real side of humanity sometimes. It is not really cynicism, if you just look around at the attitude of some televangelists and members of the US Senate about the LGBTQ+ populations.

On a side note, I wonder about films like this: if one can escape from the crowded apartment building, in a heavily populated neighbourhood, how would one get away, even in a vehicle? There are 114 million people living in the Philippines. Would it not be more realistic to pull a The Mist (2007) in that situation (but have enough ammo)? I would definitely want a quick out.

Once the action starts, which is right at the beginning, it is rare that the action lets up. We see our main group and others fight the transformed and infected. In a world where zombie (relatively) films are a dime a dozen, even though there are some formulaic moments, this is a good watch, full of action, violence, practical SFX, gore, and so much more.

IMDB listing HERE