Review: The Prey: The Legend of Karnoctus

Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2022
Images from the Internet

The Prey: The Legend of Karnoctus (aka The Prey)
Directed by Cire Hensman and Matthew Hensman (aka The Hensman Brothers)
Lennexe Films; Mano a Mano Films; Chu Media; Chinematicrex Productions
93 minutes, 2022
www.facebook.com/ThePrey
www.thepreymovie.com/

First of all, just about any film in which Danny Trejo appears is worth seeking out, no matter what the story. The man is a legend. And that he’s playing an action hero – and making it work – into his 70s is even more stunning. He deserves a star on the Walk of Fame (more than some others that had a single hit show such as a certain morally bankrupt politician).

The story, which takes place during the war in Afghanistan (though filmed near Santa Clarita, California, without Drew Barrymore), focuses on three groups…well, maybe two-and-a-half. First, there the Afghans (i.e., the enemy), who we do not get to see much other than as an attacking force, mostly out of camera sight (hence the “half”). Then there is a platoon of American soldiers, and third, a group of seemly near-elderly mercenaries (Haliburton?), which includes Vega (Trejo), Reid (Kevin Grevioux), sniper Gunnar (Adrian Paul, in a role originally offered to Bruce Campbell), and led by Tagger (Nick Chinlund). Tagger and Reid, the two main mercenaries in the story as Trejo and Paul are mostly used as cameos (even though Trejo gets the ”And…” in the title credits), are essentially Hannibal (right down to the cigars) and Baracas (bulk and attitude) from “The A-Team” (1983-87), respectively.

Nick Chinlund, Danny Trejo

The latter group pulls a Three Kings (1999) and steals a bunch of gold from the Afghans, and hides it in a cave. Meanwhile, the platoon is under fire and retreats to same cave, where Afghan artillery seals them all in with – and we learn this early in the prologue – the titular four-eyed, flesh-eating, and wooly bully “demon,” the Karnoctus.

Of course, the two groups of Americans are antagonistic to each other at first (“What are you doing in my cave?” Tagger annoyingly asks), but even during that, it is not hard to figure out that they will eventually work (and some will die) together. Like in The Descent (2005), they are trapped in the cave with a killer creature of unknown origin. One could also throw in Predator (1987) as mercenaries (and soldiers) fight something that is hunting them.

Right off the bat, though, I have a question. Have any of the crew ever been in a cave before? If you seal the entrance way, it is going to be dark. Not just dark, but daaaaark. Pitch black. Sure, they have helmet flashlights to start, but pretty soon, even without going anywhere, there is plenty of light without their headgear most of the time. But even with the LED lights, rocks absorb light so it always seems darker, and the area covered by the light is more limited. Where is the illumination coming from? It’s one of those weird, quirky film things, like the car never being able to start or no cell service. But then again, we are dealing with a possible demonic creature, so I guess I should just smile and mosey on. It actually is the right thing to do. Besides, making it darker makes it easier for things to pop out of nowhere (e.g., jump scares), even if it is not as easy to see for the viewer.

The creature is reminiscent of Bigfoot (though being that hairy in a heat-based locale like Afghanistan – even if in a darkened cave – seems a bit extraordinary, beyond it possibly being a demon (as it is called by an Afghan in the prologue), albeit with four eyes that glow in the dark.

The first half of the film is pretty slow moving (especially the introduction conversation with the platoon which is at least twice as long as necessary), but even with a few kills thrown in, it starts to pick up after the crew starts hallucinating (leading to a T&A moment) thanks to some gas, while the beastie starts to pick them off mano a mano. The gore level also starts to increase, which is interesting for a few reasons.

For example, this is not some cheapie, quickie flick that people go to see specifically for the guts and gore; this film has a reported budget of over $3 million so they have the intentions of this having a wider audience. We gorehounds thrill at this kind of stuff, but with rare exceptions like the recent The Sadness (2022), most mainstream audiences are not usually attracted to this kind of fare, and this level of viscera may turn off more than not. I am not saying this in a negative tone, because as I say, I enjoy this kind of fare and it a positive for me more than not (i.e., makes up for the talkie, slower parts).

Kevin Grevioux

With the possible exception of Lake (Masika Kalysha), the lone woman soldier, and Lt. Menzies (John David Gregory), none of the main cast are all that likeable. As they start to “dance” with the creature, that makes cheering on the Karnoctus all the easier and the kills become additionally smile-worthy.

There is definitely a comic book feel to this, and it is certainly quite planned that way. In fact, some of the action towards the end and the beginning are in comic book form. They know their intended audience and play up to that. Cool.

While this film is just being released this year (2022), it has been in pre-production long enough that one of the roles was originally assigned to Michael Clark Duncan, who passed away in 2012. That’s 10 years in pre-production hell. I’m glad they finally got the chance to get this out. While the idea of Duncan starring with Trejo seems like dream casting, real-life microbiologist Kevin Grevioux and his deep voice fills the void to a “T”.

From the “To Be Continued” at the end, it looks like this is going to be a franchise. I would be okay with that.

IMBD Listing HERE 

 

Review: American Nightmares

Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2019
Images from the Internet

American Nightmares (aka Mr. Malevolent)

Written and directed by Rusty Cundieff and Darin Scott
Patriot Pictures / Moonstone Entertainment / MVD Visual
90 minutes, 2018 / 2019
www.mvdvisual.com

For those of us who were fans of EC Comics, television shows like “Tales From the Crypt” and films such as Creepshow (1982), this is a compilation that can fit right alongside those cheesy doodles of fun.

Rather than a few films cobbled together by varied directors, here we have only two, who are also responsible for the cult hit Tales From the Hood (1995) and the more recent Tales From the Hood 2 (2018). For this new film, along with the horror, it also focuses on racial relations in Trump’s America, among other modern social-political aspects. There are eight stories in total, not counting the wraparound, and all have a twist of the knife at the end, be it literal or figurative.

In the wrap story, we meet two computer geeks in their (I’m assuming basement) man cave, who are obsessed with the darker side of the Web, focusing on nekkid women. Their screens are interrupted by a top hatted dandy called Mr. Malevolent, and his mostly silent psychic pal (a scenery-chewing Danny Trejo and Nichelle Nichols, respectively, in extended cameo roles that were probably filmed in a single day). They force these two Millennials (as they are called here) to watch a series of stories, each being vicious, and all leading up to the inevitable that is no surprise, but remains enjoyable.

Guest stars aplenty roll through the shorts, filmed especially for this collection. Many of these have roots in other tales. For example, we start off with “Mates,” where a woman who has a stalker ex-boyfriend meets her ideal companion. One cannot watch and not make a connection to “Westworld.” It’s kind of silly, but still kind of satisfying.

“The Prosecutor” takes a more political turn as Jay Mohr (remember him? He used to be on “Saturday Night Live,” and was married to a then stunning, pre-plastic surgery enhanced Nikki Cox) plays a lawyer with political ambitions who will not let the innocence of those he’s persecuted/prosecuted stand in his way. It’s a bit “The Tell-Tale Heart” meets Rudy Giuliani, as the ex-New York Mayor did pretty much the same thing by charging anyone of color of a multiple of crimes, to get the arrest numbers up to make his own District Attorney cred go up as a “crime fighter.”

There’s very little subtly in “White Flight”; well, there is no subtly and certainly no question of where the story is going as we view a reflection of a post-Charlottesville racist America. For “The Samaritan,” we get to meet our second ex-“SNL” actor in Chris Kittan. Nothing screams now like a killer clown these days as we are inundated with IT references (well, especially if you’re a horror genre fan). But this is also a tale about human trafficking, and I believe that is how it fits into this collection.

There is nothing elusive in “Hate Radio,” where we meet an Alex Jones type of screaming right wing nut; there is even a direct Trump photo reference as he spews gender hatred to his audience. But you know it’s not going to end well for him in a very imaginative way.

For “The Healer,” we are introduced to one of my own personal pet peeves, the Televangelist Faith Healer who is hustling snake oil in the name of Jeebus. But that’s before he meets a crazed fanatic in Clarence Williams III (Link from the original “Mod Squad” lookin’ a bit like Sam Jackson in 2000’s Unbreakable). Borrowing liberally, this is kind of a more extreme Resurrection (1980) and a fun story that is one of my faves of the batch.

“Thy Will Be Done” presents a pro-life trio who kidnap a woman who wants an abortion after a rape; they are intent in forcing her to have the child, and show that it’s the human monster that is most evil, often done in the name of religious beliefs.

These are mostly stories of comeuppance, in the most twisted ways, reflecting an America that is wallowing in hatred and anger over religion, power, and Other (e.g., People of Color). In that way, it is certainly more leaning towards EC Comics with adult themes. It is, however, not quite as stylized as, say, Creepshow (remember the weird angles and primary colored lights?).

The gore level is kept at kind of a cartoon level by using digital SFX rather than appliances, and sometimes it looks really good, but mostly it looks like what it is. But this really is a comic book as much as a film, so it works out okay in the long run.

The stories are divided between the two directors, and there are some decent shots and editing done, though it feels rushed at times, with some of the tales taking a day or two to shoot (my assumption). Filled with cameos, that’s how shorts tend to run these days.

Some of the acting is over the top as if being maniacal is called for to express horror. Well, this is also a dark comedy, so in some ways that’s accurate, I guess. As for the stories, many of the twists can be figured out in the first few minutes, especially the wraparound last one, but it’s still a fun ride. And the fact that the film uses a large share of African-American/Latino actors puts it in better stead from this Libtard.

The main extras are a batch of trailers, and chapters that wisely go by story.