Review: Seobok: Project Clone

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

Seobok: Project Clone (aka Seobok; The Clone)
Directed by Lee Yong-ju (aka Lee Yong Zoo)
CJ Entertainment; Well Go USA Entertainment
114 minutes, 2021
www.wellgousa.com/films/seobok-project-clone

Korean cinema is going through a bit of a Renaissance right now, in part thanks to Train to Busan (2016), a glorious zombie flick which set the fire burning in the West, along with the more mainstream and Oscar© winner for Best Picture Parasite (2019; though, personally, I would rather watch the 1982 film with that name).

But like every other culture’s art, there must be the B-pictures, which tend to fall into the area of genre films. For Seobok, it is two-fold, touching on both action and sci-fi elements. Think RoboCop (1987), Scanners (1981), and arguably Captain America: The First Avenger (2011) as the toe-dipping into these mutual categories of taking the human form and making it into the next generation of what is a person, as it were.

Part of the opening premise is a tale as old as time…well, at least since the 1960s secret agent film period. Through a bunch of intrigue that you know will make sense at some point involves a secret medical project under attack (it is not hard to figure out that it has something to do with cloning, considering the title), a retired and addicted government agent is reluctantly called out of retirement for one last job by the powers that be, referred to as (of course) The Company. In this case, that ex-retiree would be Ki-Heon Min (Gong Yoo).

Gong Yoo and Park Bo-Gm

As an aside, there was a cultural moment I found interesting. Ki-Heon is talking to a male doctor, Dr. Song (Ron Guan) on the project, and is introduced to the woman who heads the whole thing, Dr. Im Se-Sun (Jang Young Nam) and then Ki-Heon turns his back on her to ask him a question, which he mansplains. Why would he not ask the head? And it’s interesting to see someone smoking a cigarette in a scientific lab. Perhaps I am too woke? But, as always, I digress…

Obviously, Seobok (Park Bo-Gum) – which is alternatively spelled Seo Bok in places – is said first human clone (though I get the feeling that somewhere in the world there are real human clones). But he’s closer to Sil in Species (1995) than pure human, for he cannot naturally die (though under certain circumstances, and that he can be killed). He has grown to a full adult in 10 years, and can also control objects around him with telekinesis like Carrie (1976/2013), and his blood can cure diseases. Among other things, Ki-Heon is entrusted to save him from whomever is trying to squash the project through violent means. Seobok is also an innocent, Jesus-like character in his manner and the “miracles” he can perform through things like healing and telekinesis. But we all know how that story turned out for JC.

While K Ki-Heon is a bundle of tension and energy, Seobok is awkwardly stoic and unemotional, and a bit naive about the world, sort of like the Jim Carey character in The Truman Show (1998), but without the charm and peace of mind. He’s spent his whole life in a lab being painfully experimented upon, and no companion to entrust his thoughts, other than the doctors who are torturing him. He is both enlightened in some ways, and completely oblivious in others. Either way, he has no social skills.

Because we are dealing with secret government agencies, of course we must add in the genre of the likes of The Bourne Identity (2002), with a lot of intrigue, and double and triple crosses. Some you will see coming, such as the well-worn trope of a transport truck and cars being ambushed on the road. I am not giving anything away, because a 5 grader will see it coming a mile away.

One of the things I find amusing (because it is fiction) is in this film, as with many imports, the Americans are the villains. Remember, this was filmed during the Trump years, so I can understand the contempt considering this is made in South Korea, and Trump idolizes their enemy, the leader of North Korea. Jingoistic yahoos from the US South may be offended by this notion of US baddies, without looking at the socio-political implications that imbue it. For obvious reasons, while most of the film is in Korean (with pretty clear captioning), there is some English as well.

There is also a bit of a buddy movie subtheme going on, as Ki-Heon and Seobok bond trying to get out of dangerous situations. There is no real humor as with most buddy pics, but the bonding is there as both men need each other is other ways to save their lives. They are both reliant on each other, one for their abilities of the mind, the other of the body (i.e., shooting and martial arts fighting).

Unlike some of the Asian action films, this starts off more as a character study with occasional bits of violence thrown in, but I really enjoyed some of the quieter bits, such as Seobok experiencing a marketplace for the first time, or he and Ki-Heon talking over a bowl of instant Ramen Noodles, Seobok’s first “real” food (are those packaged soups really food?; it certainly is filled with sodium) as he’s only had “supplements” at the lab.

By the half-way mark, the two main characters are on their own, trying to survive a number of different elements after them, with Ki-Heon’s skill and arms (both physical and McLuhan-esque extensions, i.e., guns) and Seobok’s almost Buddha-like-calmness and telekinesis as their shields to fight their way to possible safety.

The film is overly long at 1:54, but some obvious moments are bound to happen, including some philosophizing about life and death since Seobok can stay alive under the right circumstances and Ki-Heon has six months to live. Also, you just know that Ki-Heon will bring up the “human” emotions in Seobok, and in return Seobok will give Ki-Heon strength to face the inevitable. Despite their differences and cliché distrust at the onset, they form a friendship that goes beyond their expected roles in each other’s lives.

While there are spirts of action sprinkled throughout, most of the film deals with the psychology of our two main protagonists, philosophizing about life and especially death, and what is our purpose, with just a hint of religiosity thrown in between the lines. Naturally, the main thrust of the real action is in the final reel, as it were, reminiscent of both Carrie and Lucy (2014).

The film is beautifully shot, with scenes of what I believe is Seoul, and the countryside as well. The visuals are crisp and the action is not overly edited, which is a rarity these days. While there are some cliches, as I have stated earlier, the story remains interesting albeit overly long. There is also a nice use of brief flashbacks that help us understand the protagonists and antagonists a bit better as far as motivation toward, well, let’s say good and evil. All in all, it was a good watch, even if it is, for me, a single-viewing film.

IMBD Listing HERE 

 

Review: Nightshooters

Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2021
Images from the Internet

Nightshooters
Directed by Marc Price
Ascendant Films; Dead Pixel Productions; White Hot Productions;
Indican Entertainment; Lightening Entertainment;
Mop Media; Nowhere Fast Productions
100 minutes, 2018 / 2021
www.facebook.com/nightshootersmovie
www.tribal.film/nightshooters 

I am not quite sure why, but I tend of like films that show mayhem behind the camera at a movie shoot. In this case, we are in London, and the crew is doing some final pick-ups overnight – a very common practice – when the space is clear. Most of the releases that fit into this category tend to be slashers, such as Lights Camera Dead (2007), or even A Serbian Film (2010).

Nightshooters, however, falls directly into the action and gangster film categories, rather than horror. It’s closer to Die Hard (1988) than a slice-‘em-up. That being said, the film-within-the-film that is being made is a nice mix of martial arts and an incredibly visceral and bloody zombie flick, Dawn of the Deadly. Those who wish for the gore, just the opening alone can make you smile (It did for me).

Rosanna Hoult, Kaitlyn Riordan

The location for this film (and the meta shoot) are two abandoned office buildings, high rise towers that face each other, ready for demolition. This gives a great cavernous feel that is both wide and broad, yet at the same time a bit claustrophobic. If you have ever been in a buidling that has been stripped down to its skeleton, you will know what I mean. Same no permits by the story's film crew were obtained.

Both the cast and crew of the meta film are a bunch of characters, including Harper (Doug Allen), a petulant, lecherous and alcoholic lead actor who is so vain he has his own picture on his phone case; Marshall (Adam McNab), a harried director who has no issues with shortcuts or legalities to get the shot, safety be damned; Oddbod (Nicky Evans), a sound guy who likes to complain (though I can’t really see where he is wrong); Kim (Mica Procter), an assistant who can’t get the coffee machine working; an ammo expert, Ellie (Rosanna Hoult); put-upon producer Jen (Canadian actor Kaitlyn Riordan) who amusingly wears an Montreal Expos hat; and a stunt coordinator, Donnie (real-life stuntman and martial artist, Jean-Paul Ly).

Jean-Paul Ly

And while our hearty, dysfunctional crew are setting up for the last night of shooting before the walls come tumblin’ down in the morning, there is something else going on in the building across the way: some gangsters, led by Tarker (Richard Sandling), are taking care of business by fiery execution (as mobsters do).

As they do what comes natural in the gangster world if you have watched such fare as “The Sopranos,” guess who happens to be watching the whole thing in the window across the way? Yep. Of course, the order is given by Tarker to his crew to take care of the problem in their own, initiable, mobster ways: go full Die Hard (see, I mentioned it for a reason).

Richard Sandling

The bad guys group are professional killers. The film crew are not, but they have their own talents, as we learn. It is definitely and us versus them situation, but will it be a Little Big Horn massacre scenario or something else? Good thing is, with this many people involved, it is guaranteed to have an interesting body count number. It does seem strange, though, that there were this many people needed for a mob hit, but who am I to complain about it? The more, the merrier, the more the messier. The practical SFX, done by Lea James, is nicely mixed with some CGI blood splattering.

The acting is top notch, and these are some well-honed talents, but for me the standout is Sandling, who reminds me of some of the gritter work done by Bo Hoskins in films like The Long Good Friday (1980), especially a speech he gives early on before the initial execution. The other bad guy worth mentioning is Nicholas Aaron as O’Hara, second-in-charge.

While technically not horror, as I stated above, there is definitely a level of high action drama with lots of blood and viscera as our tribes do what they need to survive. The martial arts action is actually quite amazing. No ridiculous wire work or spinning to the roof like many modern genre films, but rather more Jet Li solid body pounding work. Ly is definitely fun to watch. Some people have referred to this as a comedy, but I don’t see it, other than a couple of funny lines here and there. But I am totally comfortable considering this a solid action drama with a bit of comic relief.

As the side of advantage changes often and quickly, there is quite a lot of fun cat and mouse games between the groups for a while, as they are both maladjusted and some not so smart, but once the killing finally does begin, it’s graphic and brutal. There were multiple ones that were so impressive, I backed it up to watch again. Wheeeeee.

Mica Procter

The only odd thing in the film that poked my rassoodocks is that Marshall seems to disappear somewhere late in the second act, and then suddenly reappears towards the end of the film with no explanation that I caught.

The film crew aspect can be seen as a subtle commentary on what it is like to work on a low budget, to do whatever it takes to make it work. I have been on one indie set in my life, so it’s not like I have a wealth of experience, but I am assuming that this is pretty much more damn accurate than not, more often than not. On a modern, cultural aspect, while this was filmed three years ago (and now being released on disc and a number of digital and cable outlets after a Festival tour), it is interesting to see the questionable set safety dynamics in a post-Alec Baldwin/Rust period of filmmaking history.

The director, Marc Price, has proven himself with the likes of the zombie epic Colin (2008), and here he continues to do well to mix the gritty gangster style of, say, early Guy Ritchie, and to mix it with martial arts. The filmmaking aspect of this, such as the cinematography by Tom Barker is occasionally mouth-droppingly good, especially the lighting during the fighting scenes, and the editing by Price is tight and tense. The film is 100 minutes long, and keeps the attention for the full time.

 

Review: Lazarus

Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2021
Images from the Internet

Lazarus
Directed by R.L. Scott
Wonder Studios; Overdog Entertainment;
Phoenix Rising Films; Samuel Goldwyn Films
105 minutes, 2021
www.facebook.com/WhoIsLazarus/

Comic book movies are not always based on the standard comic characters. It is a tone, a stylistic choice by the production, that make it a modern comic book film. Don’t get me wrong, there actually is a comic by the Lazarus name, but it is totally not connected to this release, but rather is a sci-fi action coming of age story about a woman.

For this film, the aptly named titular Ray Lazarus (Sean Riggs) is an African-American man who is killed, then comes back to life thanks to a mysterious being called Hellfire (Shane Brolly, who was Kraven in the Underworld franchise), whose powers include strength, the ability to absorb the life force and knowledge of those he whomps, and he cannot be killed; he wears a costume to weed the city of criminals. Wait a minute, didn’t I see that in the comic Spawn? I own the original comic run (first editions), but yeah, the film version (1997) was a bit over the top, while this has more of a The Punisher vibe.

Sean Riggs

The events take place in the sarcastically named Paradise City (I’m pretty sure I saw a low-angle shot of the Empire State Building, but why not?).

The main villain is violent drug kingpin Testament (Adamo Palladino) who had Lazarus killed in the first place. He is yet another one of a legion of Biblically referenced names such as Chapel and, as the Ying to Hellborn’s Yang, there is Epiphany. Why Hellborn is so – err – fired up on Lazarus taking Testament off the streets makes no sense to me, as I would think he would be in favor of “sin.” But there is more afoot as Epiphany (Lyndsey Lantz) is busy working on an equally powerful evil version of Lazarus, because opposites attack. Hey, every superhero film needs an equal match-up for its final act, right? This isn’t meant to be critical, just realistic to the genre. Just think Thanos or Hela (Ragnarok).

Somehow, Super-Lazarus manages to get a small army together (why, if he is that increasingly powerful and can’t die?) to take on mid-level distributor Poet (Damien T. Raven) and his superior, Testament. Meanwhile, a police detective, Benjamin Poge (Costas Mandylor, who played Mark Hoffman in a few Saw films), who drives a car no real city police officer, even of a higher rank, could ever afford, is inquiring into the high body count. Then there is an assassin from Testament, the amusingly named Endless (Kevin Lukata).

There are essentially five women in minor roles here: first is attractive Nina (Nicki Micheaux) as a drug distributor who is instantly the obvious possible love interest for Lazarus, depending on her questionable loyalties, Testament’s cancer-ridden sister, Priscilla (Christina Wren, that played Carrie Farris in the DC Universe), who is on her deathbed, a tarot card reader who works for Testament, Flora (a cameo by pop singer Mya) who is a psychic/Tarot card reader, the sister of one of Lazarus’s friends, Pogo (Linc Hand) named Winter (cute Kayla Vosburg), and the aforementioned Epiphany. There is more in the female part of the cast, but these are the ones that appear at the top level. Most of the other women are tertiary characters, such as a police officer or, especially, numerous mob groupies who lay around snorting powder in lingerie, lolling on couches. This was definitely (a) written by a man, and (b) written for a teen male audience.

Adamo Palladino, Damien T. Raven

The dialogue is stunningly cliché and clumsy in a comic book tone that over enunciates and spaces out words, and is often bland in a pseudo-philosophical way, even with a Noah’s Flood of F-bombs. One piece of monolog by a gang assassin states, “We are what we are. My path is set. Fate already chosen. You knew this was going to happen. Now they are going to die, and there is nothing to stop it.” There are also numerous plot holes that made me kind of antsy; for example, one person is done away with by the mob, yet they left all their information there for the police to find. And why so many short “P” names, such as Poet, Pogo, and Poge? Also, why would the mob crews in warehouses where drugs are being manufactured not have guns?

Good thing is that this can definitely be classified as an action film. Despite the occasional gun play, most of the fighting is hand-to-hand, be it boxing style or mixed martial arts. It is well choreographed and fun to watch as numerous necks are snapped.

I actually like alternative universe comic stories (i.e., other than MCU or DCU), and while this obviously has a decent budget, it is not a multi-million-dollar extravaganza, and that is good. Despite its issues, and it definitely has some, it holds up. It is also nice to see such a large Black cast, which even Spawn did not employ. Furthermore, having the whole “balance” theme is a nice touch.

The film definitely sets up for a sequel, as promises that are made are indicated at the end (I will not divulge). Personally, I was thinking of a couple of really good, unexpected Yangs to Lazarus’s Ying, as I said, but despite that they chose the obvious route, and I am okay with that. I am looking forward to the next installment, whenever that will be, and I hope they give the female characters a bit more to chew on, story-wise.

Kevin Lukata

For the visuals, the film is well-shot and edited, with cool “swipes” between scenes in an appropriately comic book sort of look. However, as is an issue in too many films, especially independents, Lazarus expresses “darkness” or night through a dark, blue lens. Okay, this is a nice way to make it moody, but it also makes it harder to see what the hell is going on. This is a pet peeve of mine. Not all of us have HD 30” screens, y’know. Despite that (rather than because of it), it’s a pretty enjoyable story, even with the “comic book” reigns on the acting styles, also to purposely give it a mood to fit the dialogue.

While this film is available on DVD and Blu-ray, it can also be seen for free on TubiTv.com; however, note that because it is an exclusive release, they need to pay for it considering the platform is free, so when I viewed it, there were 5 commercials at about 9 minutes, 3 at 31 minutes, 4 at 51 minutes, 4 at 63 minutes, 3 at 76 minutes, and 3 at 90 minutes (and all had right-wing/NRA-sponsoring Coors). That’s 22 ads at about 20 seconds each, or 7.5 minutes. Phew.

 

Review: Parts Unknown

Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2021
Images from the Internet

Parts Unknown
Directed by Richard Chandler
Boston Film Family; Wild Eye Releasing
117 minutes, 2018 / 2020
www.facebook.com/PartsUnknownMovie/
www.bostonfilmfamily.com/
www.wildeyereleasing.com 

There is a natural correlation between professional wrestling and horror cinema. Just seek out releases from Mexico, even from the 1960s. Sure, lots of films use actual wrestlers in tough guy roles. For example, in mainstream there are Dwayne Johnson “The Rock,” “Rowdy” Roddy Piper and Terry Bollea aka Hulk Hogan; but there is also an impact from luche libre made in indie films, such as Gene Snitskey and Samu Anoa’i.

William DeCoff

For this mash-up, its William DeCoff, whose multi-title winning wrestling name was Sean “Battleship” O’Reilly, playing scarred patriarch Hermann Von Strasser (perhaps a nod to DeCoff’s mentor, Fritz von Erich?). He angrily struggles with his place in the modern tech world, where people at matches are more focused on scrolling their cell phones than on what is happening in the ring. I understand this: if you go to a taping of a live television production, be it a talk show, game show or “Saturday Night Live,” you will see people in the audience watching the monitors rather than the real-life action happening a few feet from them. Fascinating to see. But, as always, I digress…

It seems the angrier Hermann gets, the more his western Massachusetts accent flairs, which is delightful, especially in moments when he says things like “We’re all paht of this now... capisce?!” Then again, he says cringey stuff like, “I gotta get some money from the Jew,” meaning sleezy wrestling promoter Gary Wilkerstein (Ralph Regine). It’s plain obvious that nearly the entire Von Strasser family is pretty, well, not nice people. While patriarch Hermann (DeCoff) is a piece of work and his insane/infantile brother Harvey (Alexander Hauck) is a murderous ruffie-rapist who wears a MAGA hat to show just how mentally “off” he is, the scarily insane one is cute, pill-poppin’ sister Kitty (Sarah Michelle), who has a vein of evil that is to the core. Just look at her eyes and the way she twirls her hair… oh, and how much she gets off on people getting killed, even kin. To be fair, though, most of the characters are pretty scuzzy, though one possible shining star of decency may be wrestler Lacey (soapmaker Lizzie Havoc). Let’s see where that goes.

Lizzie Havoc and Sarah Michelle

So, what happens to this evil family when they are asked by some diminutive demonic creature called The Holiness (voiced by wrestler Jake “The Snake” Roberts and embodied by Christina Costello, who is 5-foot tall, the same as my mom; but again, I digress…) for blood sacrifices? Hermann complies, making a deal with the demon with “I live for blood.” And a murder spree is on its way. But honestly, from the time before this, it’s pretty obvious that they don’t need to promise a demon, they’re pretty violent from the beginning.

Christina Costello

I believe this is taking place in 2033, from a radio announcement, which would explain the neon lighting everywhere that’s right out of Café Flesh (1982). In fact, there is a lot of this that reminds me of that film, as well as the director’s (Steven Sayadian) follow-up, Dr. Caligari (1989), including the synth score and the camera angles/editing. Like Café Flesh, this is a film, on a secondary level, about voyeurism and the audience’s lack of ability, which is appropriate in today’s world, never mind 2033. An example of this is a wrestling match between Lacey and Kitty, which becomes downright brutal, yet the audience is cheering it on in flaccid fascination, reminiscent of a theme from Garfunkel and Oats’ “Sports Go Sports”: “You watch genetically superior people/Do things you never will.” There’s a nice nod to Gladiator (2000) to put an emphasis to this.

Alexandra Cipolla

To add onto this story, there is Mary Price (Alexandra Cipolla, who was also good in The Trees Have Eyes, 2020; reviewed HERE) as an undead police detective and possible goddess on the trail of the killer family for justice and revenge. And damn, I’m not even half way through this film.

Lizzie Havoc

While this isn’t necessarily a sequel to the director, Richard Chandler’s previous film, Witch Hunters (2016; reviewed HERE), there is a connection, as they both take place in the same universe of witches and demons, with a character from the previous film, Dominic Damarus (Chandler) making an appearance, and Lacey is the daughter of Sheriff Tormada in that film. There is also a cameo reference to an earlier Chandler film which I have not seen, Gilgamesh (2014).

As is common with Witch Hunters, there appear to be no separation of acts, and the action flows constantly, be it wrestling or physical havoc involving guns, knives, and even a wood chipper. The gore is fun and not necessarily over the top in looks, but the action is at times brutal and the mere suggestion of it is enough to make most (especially women) squirm. There is violence perpetrated by everyone and on everyone, but it’s particular when it comes to women, which I won’t go into detail. Speaking of women, there is lots of skin exposure (one male at a distance), especially the northern territory, be it cleavage, under-hang, or just toplessness. Men are killed, but women are sexually harmed. I’m not going to take a side on the argument, but I am sure there may be bound to be one if you see this as a couple.

My issue with the film, mostly, is just the pure length of it, at three minutes shy of two hours. Sure, the acting is all over the place, and the storyline sometimes gets convoluted, but that’s the nature of indie cinema and you can take it or leave it, but the sheer length is… well, it could be edited down a bit without losing any of the piledriver impact.

Review: The VelociPastor

Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2019

Images from the Internet

The VelociPastor

Directed by Brendan Steere

Cyfuno Ventures / Hollow Tree Films / Laika Come Home /
Wild Eye Releasing / MVD Entertainment

75 minutes, 2018

www.wildeyereleasing.com

www.mvdb2b.com

I’ll be honest with ya, as I always am… I try to review things in the order I get them, but as soon as I saw this, I put all others aside and threw this on the player. Some films project that they are so bad that they grab your attention and say, “Oh, you’re gonna wanna see this” to me. A priest who turns into a velociraptor? I’m all in, dude!

It’s important to note that this is not just a version of a werewolf film, it’s actually more. In no particular order, it’s an homage to the amazing bad horror films of the mid-VHS period of the late ‘70s-early ‘80s, before there was CGI (most of the effects are practical, but there is one key digital moment during a flashback sequence in the middle); also it’s as played-straight comedy filled deliberate errors to emulate the micro-budget VHS features; it’s brilliant in its own goofy way; and there are so many genres thrown in and mixed in a bowl here it’s bound to get your attention, a multitude of styles of movie mayhem from that period you liked.

Greg Cohan

So, let’s break it down a bit, first with what’s going on, in the most surface of ways as I don’t want to ruin any of it for you. After a tragedy, Father Doug Jones (buffed-out Greg Cohan) travels to Asia where he comes in possession of an artifact that lets him turn into the titular creature: a very rubberized man-in-a-suit that looks more like a mini-T-Rex. Meanwhile he comes to the acquaintance of forbidden love object and hooker Carol (Alyssa Kempinski, who has some killer cheek bones), while gangsters and a Chinese warlord priest with Japanese Ninja guards who speak Korean come sniffin’ around with various agendas. Then in Family Guy fashion, there’s those flashback memories of family and war. Who will win the battle for Doug’s soul, as it were?

 

Okay, now for the framework of the film. This isn’t the first one of use deliberate measures to show low budget and incompetence (Richard Griffin’s Seven Dorms of Death [2015] comes to the top of my head), but it’s still a hoot. Here, there are action shots missing with a notice for the CGI to be added later, and when a head is ripped off, it’s pretty obvious (i.e., intentionally) that it’s a store mannequin’s topper. The fight scenes are straight out of the Dolemite school of martial arts. There are other fine moments that had me laughing out loud, but I’ll leave that as a bonus when you see it.

Alyssa Kepinski

The acting, again, is a mix of purposefully hammy and dead serious, and the two leads especially not only excel in this (it’s actually harder for a good actor to pretend to be bad, than the other way around), but really seem to be having a blast playing these roles. Meanwhile there’s lots of blood and cheesy-type gore, enough to make a splatterfest fiend smile, but not necessarily turn off a neophyte fan of the red stuff.

There are some decent extras here, including an amusing nearly 9-minute gag reel, the film’s trailer (along with a bunch of others), captions that can be a bit on the quick side, and at the Texas Fightmare 2019 Festival Midnight Screening Q&A hosted by Matt D. (representing Wild Eye) that lasts over 28 minutes. Usually the sound quality for these festivals is terrible, but this one wasn’t too bad, I’m happy to say. Present are the director, Cohan and producer Jesse Gouldsbury. The group were amusing, telling great stories and explaining the genesis of the film (originally a school project of the director’s) with humor straight across.

Then there is the film commentary, which I was looking forward to hearing; it is also Steere, Cohan and Gouldsbury. Sometimes it’s a bit hard to tell who is talking, but most of what they are saying is fun and relevant (though there’s a bit of dross, such as discussing the food they are eating while recording the commentary). There is a bit of overlap from the festival Q&A, but that is common and forgivable. Mostly it’s enjoyable, and it’s pretty obvious these guys get along. I do wish that Kempinski was in on it, too; I think hearing a female perspective would have enriched the experience, but I don’t want it to sound like I’m complaining, because I’m not.

One of the strong points of the film is the look and editing. There is a lot of split-screen action that is incredibly well done for a group that is this novice, i.e., haven’t made that many features yet. Steere discusses how time-consuming certain scenes were, and I believe it. Beautiful to look at and kept the pace moving along.

My favorite scene in the film is towards the end, involving the Ninjas during an emotional moment, but I won’t give it away. There is talk in the commentary about a sequel in the works. If that’s so, I am so up for it. It’s actually quite difficult to purposefully make a “bad” film and have it shine like this hybrid horror / action / kung fu flick.

Review: Walking Tall

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

Walking Tall

Directed by Kevin Bray
20 Century Fox / MGM / MVD Marquee Collection
86 minutes, 2004 / 2018
www.mvdvisual.com

I like Dwayne Johnson as an actor. He’s versatile with good chops in many genres, including action, drama, and even his comic timing is top notch. But this remake of the 1973 film of the same title (though the characters’ names change here) does not star Dwayne Johnson; rather, it is wrestling superstar The Rock. Yes, there is a difference, and it all comes down to money, i.e., who is doing the financing.




The real Buford Pusser

This film is based also on the life of Buford Pusser (d. 1974) though more glitzy than the original in which stoic-yet-slow-burn Joe Don Baker played him as a man finally fed up and seeking revenge, as his town is turned into a Pottersville, if you will, and his wife is killed by the mob. Here, The Rock plays him as Chris Vaughn, a U.S. Army Special Forces Sergeant with combat training, who is highly skilled in the art of killing. And he certainly does plenty of it here.

Many of the key scenes are redone from the ’73 release, which is somewhat more accurate to Buford’s real life, but here liberties are definitely taken (e.g., Vaughn is unmarried). Actually I don’t have a problem with the re-vision of the original story, as that’s common practice in cinema history. It’s the level of the amping of testosterone in a video game world that I find, well, kinda meh. Back in Tennessee when the real story happened, one could possibly get away with the things that Buford did, never mind the mob. I can’t really imagine Vaughn in then-modern 2004 sneaking out of getting jail time. All the mob had to do is donate minimal money to a right-wing cause, and as we’ve seen in real life, people will follow blindly.



The Rock, Johnny Knoxville

See, this here version was produced by Vince McMahon, head of the wrestling association that The Rock is affiliated with, so it’s going to amp up the machismo and violence because they want to market their product (i.e., The Rock). What they ended up with was a film that basically has no character, no sense of proportion, and in which women are there to be mainly strippers and hookers, with zero personalities. His new girlfriend (Ashley Scott) is a pole dancer/call girl who works for the casino, and spends much of her screen time in red bra and panties.

As in the wrestling ring, it’s essentially mano-a-mano as The Rock goes against ex-friend and now drug dealer/casino owner Jay (seemingly perpetual villain Neal McDonough). Rounding out the group is the “comic relief” of The Rock’s sidekick, played by the ever annoying Johnny Knoxville.



Neal McDonough

Everyone gets the crap beaten out of them at some point or another, but you know who will prevail in an apparently never ending string of fights between The Rock and any number of Jay’s henchmen. And who will be the final victor? Follow the funding.

The bonus material, which I honestly did not watch, includes subtitles, an audio commentary by The Rock, and another one with the Director, Film Editor and Director of Photography, a “Fight the Good Fight” stunts featurette, deleted scenes, blooper reel, an alternate ending, a photo gallery, and the original theatrical trailer.

I don’t mind films with fighting. The Kung Fu craze of the ‘70s and ‘80s was fun and I still get a kick (pun not intended) out of those. Imaginative ones like Die Hard and Fight Club prove that it can be quite interesting, but this is just a bunch of nothing set pieces that are there to serve the purpose of promoting a product (again, The Rock), rather than telling a story. The film did well, financially, and helped The Rock become Dwayne Johnson, out of the banner of the wrestling venue. So in the long run that’s a good thing, right?