Review: Dead Air

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

Dead Air
Directed by Kevin Hicks
Chinimble Lore; Freestyle Digital Media
90 minutes, 2021
www.chinimblelore.com/

Poor William (director Kevin Hicks). He’s a lonely widower in 1984 with two young teen girls (real sisters, Madison and Mackenzie Skodzinsky), one of whom is goddamn obnoxious as she’s entering puberty mean girl age, but I digress already... He’s also bitter. His mom died recently, and now he’s going through some of the stuff she had hidden away, including a short-wave radio. William now has a new hobby.

He has two “Radio Radio” connections: the minor one is some static-filled talking that I was having trouble making out, but you know will be pertinent by the end, and he connects with an equally depressed, housebound (she is agoraphobic) woman named Eva (Vickie Hicks). She even has her groceries delivered. I’m only a third of the way through, but I’m guessing that will be significant.

Kevin Hicks

Shades of films like Frequency (2000), The Butterfly Effect (2003), and The Lake House (2006), there are hints given throughout in blaring terms that there is a connection to the two of them beyond meeting like two birds on the wire (apologies to L. Cohen). I am really trying hard not to give too much away; it just seems the hints are like electric shocks rather than the kind where you get it the second time you watch the film. Still, that does not deter me, because so far it is actually a well-made film. But more later.

There is a supernatural element to this as things go tossing off a table by itself, for example. And who is responsible? Is it the ghost of William’s mom? His late wife? Jeebus?

Of course, there is an ultimate reason why William and Eva connect, though I’m sure that will come through eventually, as they must. They obviously are going to have an affect on each other; but again, it is their relationship that is the center of the story. Then again, there is the film’s title as another clue.

Vickie Hicks

A wise plot choice of the writer (Vickie Hicks) is to have William attending therapy with Dr. Jennings (Chris Xaver), so the viewer can get some exposition on events that have given William some PTSD, insights on William’s character, and to hear what he is thinking. Their scenes together are essentially a modern version of the Greek Chorus, and I am grateful for it.

Eva may be the only one who is isolated, but we never see William go of to work, even though he runs the family farm right off the Finger Lakes of Lansing/Ithaca, New York State. He’s either taking care of the girls, going to therapy, or in the basement (wearing a baseball cap down there) fiddling with stuff and on the ham sandwi… I mean, ham radio (sorry, I’m hungry). Many times people without a populated work environment are socially alienated, so it’s no wonder that he and Eva have a connection.

What is nice is that the relationship between Eva and William is not what one would expect, and by the third act, it starts becoming clear for the characters that there is something metaphysical going on that leads (or led) to a tragic event. There is an easier route the writer could have followed, but I am glad the plot took the course it did. There are some questions though, as since they talk so often, there is no mention of current events or any contemporary happenings, even when they talk all night. That seems odd to me: if I talk to someone for a long period of time, you can bet that I am going to be mentioning something contemporary at some point.

I love that it is set in the 1980s because it is pre-cell phones, computers, and all the other technology that would honestly be in the way of the storytelling. For example, the teens do paste-up storyboards instead of being glued to some version of a screen.

The acting is mostly good, with the best performance by Vickie Hicks, who comes across quite natural in her emotions. Kevin is watchable, too, though occasionally his line reading feels a little forced, especially when he is angry; but this is certainly not enough to take away from the story.

While some of the themes becomes quite obvious early on, the details come crashing down in the final act, and there are definitely some unexpected moments that bump this up into a decent thriller. The supernatural aspects are not overwhelming and there is no blood, only course language.

Some of the tropes used in the story are not new, but that is okay because it is twisted around in a different way, creating a project that sounds familiar but veers off, sort of like hearing new lyrics on an old melody. This makes this a fun watch, but be sure to pay attention to the hints along the way, and see if you come up with the right conclusion.

The film is available across North America in Digital HD and Cable Video on Demand.

 

Reviews: The Visitant; Revisitant

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

I found out about the sequel, so I figured I would check out the original first.

 

The Visitant
Directed by Jon Binkowski
Kings of Horror; FWC Pictures
87 minutes, 2014
https://kingsofhorror.com/the-visitant/

After a short and well done prologue, we are introduced to struggling and aging actress Samantha (Michelle Simms). Her current gig is as a professional psychic in an amusement park. I used to date the assistant of a professional psychic and have seen how intense the job can be, and how over the top the clientele are sometimes. Samantha is a charlatan, and she knows it.

But, as these things must in this kind of film, a mysterious client, Lee (Sallie Glaner), shows up with a real psychic problem: a visitant by malevolent spirit in her home. Like a game of tag team, the wraith connects to a person and makes their lives a living hell, with electronics flashing, lights going on and off, glass breaking, and oddly enough, towels being folded, among other manifestations.

Michelle Simms; Sallie Glaner

This was a surprisingly fun ride, with some genuine jump scares and effects that are not over the top, but definitely effective. There is some CGI involved but it looked minimal to me, with most of the effects being practical.

The one big flaw in the story, in my opinion, is that Samantha stays in the house, often on the phone with her friend Maya (Tracy Wiu), who is both a real psychic expert and in the Greek Chorus role so Samantha can express what she is thinking out loud, and give some exposition about Samantha and her late husband. One minute all these supernatural things are happening, the next she’s excusing it and refusing to go. If I may digress, I once stayed overnight at a friend’s family home, in the basement suite. As I was falling asleep, I felt someone sit on the bed. I turned on the light and no one was there. I slept in the car. Samantha has a radio static call her name and is only momentarily bothered by it. Sure, the thing will follow her, but she does not know that. She should have left until she did.

Other than that, I found the film much better than I expected. It was definitely creepy, even though it uses some tropes that are not uncommon. I was impressed, and it kept my attention. Usually, I write my reviews as I watch the film, but for this I am composing it after.

I was also impressed by the acting. Simms keeps up the character without being either too over the top, or so dead-pan that she doesn’t recognize the situation. Simms is onscreen nearly the entire film and often by herself (not counting the spook), and she carries it fiercely right until the end. Again, while she is calmer than I would be in that situation and much earlier, she gives the character some pathos and determination. As the initial visitant attachee, Glaner does a great job. What I have seen of her before (demo reels on IMDB), she tends to play stoic doctor or executive types, but here she does frazzled really well, especially when she’s talking to Samantha at the amusement park.

There were a few cliché elements I was expecting which did not occur, which is also a credit to the writing. It is nicely shot and edited, using the timing well. The twist about how the progression of the spirit worked well within the story’s framework. Overall, it was a surprisingly fun and one of the better nasty ghost films I have seen in a while.

Watch the whole film free HERE 

 

ReVisitant
Directed by Jon Binkowski
Kings of Horror; Renaissance Entertainment; Terror Films
100 minutes, 2019
www.revisitant.com
www.terrorfilms.net

Since I do not have a nosebleed, I am going to progress onto the recently released sequel of The Visitant, witfully titled ReVisitant.

With what seems like a larger budget, the prologue is essentially a recap by showing five minutes of the ending of the first film, along with some other informative reminding bits going forward.

We are introduced to a new family a couple of doors down from the original house, which is now owned by the bank, scheduled to be razed. Personally, I think it is a great house, but capitalism tends to win out.

Maya Smith, Amy Smith, Lisa Enos Smith, Jade Rattigan

The occupants are a mother, Leslie (Lisa Enos Smith), her young daughter Sarah (Jade Rattigan), a teenage daughter, Amanda (Amy Smith), and Amanda’s friend, Kat (Maya Smith). Sarah tends to sneak into the spooked house and “rescues” some of the creepy artifacts, but what gets passed along to the family is far worse, and if you have seen the first film, you know what I mean. Actually, I’ll bet you can pretty well figure that out anyway.

The entity manages to jump to many people in this issue, much like in the 1998 film, Fallen. There is also a couple of nods to Poltergeist (1982), such as an incident involving a chair; Sarah really seems to be getting into the whole ghost thing, but you know it’s going to get darker as the film progresses. As the being takes hold, it is interesting to see its progression, from being like a trailer attached to a car to becoming the whole RV.

As more and more characters get added to the story, including some from the first film, an abusive stalker ex-boyfriend Norm Becker (J.T. Becker) who you know is as good as toast, and cat lady neighbor Miss Patty Pender (Patty Bender, in another character/cast name bender), there is more of a variety than in the first release.

With all the horror this family goes though, the film also has a – dare I say it – devilish sense of humor, at times, along with some decent jump scares. For example, a relatively comic relief character, Griffon (Marc Musso). is wearing a Scare Zone tee-shirt, from a 2009 film by ReVisitant’s director.

Sallie Glander, Amy Smith

As with the first, the standard for the acting here is incredibly high, with Sallie Glaner and relative newcomer Rattigan holding her own.

There were three questions in the story I had when the film proper ended, two of which were resolved “Dark Shadows” style during the final credits (make sure you sit through the credits at least until the cast is listed). The third and unresolved one is that Maya had been tagged by the meanie for a year, but it wasn’t until after it passed to the next person that she brought out Griffon to get rid of the manifestation, whom she apparently knew even before the first film?

In this film as with the last, there are some genuine jump scares and effects that, while are also not over the top, are more intense, with minimal CGI.

As is common in the follow-up, we are given the back story of the spirit and a hint of more to come. I certainly would not object to that. Both these films are good candidates to be added to the spookathon canon.

Review: Faceless

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

Faceless
Directed by Marcel Sarmiento
Blackbear Studios; Producer Capital Fund; Indican Pictures
97 minutes, 2021
www.indicanpictures.com/new-releases/faceless

Imagine taking a bowl and throwing in the 800 lb. gorilla of face changing movies, Face/Off (1997) and then add in some elements of Old Boy (I prefer the 2003 Chan-Wook Park version, but if you want to keep with the overemoting theme of Face/Off, we can go with the 2013 U.S. remake), stir it vigorously, and you end up with something different than either of them.

After a short prologue showing a low-life gambling addict who is betting on a dog fight under a highway, we meet the protagonist of the story, George (Brendan Sexton III, who has made lots of films, but I recognize him from 2010’s The Runaways), who wakes in the hospital having had a complete face transplant and no memory of how he got there. The operation during the credits and the gauze removal was painful to watch (scalpels and needles are an admitted weak spot for me).

With a Coen Brothers’ languid pace and artistic flair, the film has a dark, almost sepia tone, and a disorienting feel as George tries to figure out who he is, both in the past and now with a new and scarred face that even his parents repel at, giving the audience a taste of his new life and mood.

When a mysterious masked man in a bunny hug – I mean a hoodie – starts popping up in a threatening manner, it seems to be subtly implying that George, a man in a human mask, is meeting a man in a full blanched-out teddy bear mask. Is this real or is it a trick of his mind, possibly the original owner of his new countenance? Or, as his boss askes, “Are you sure it’s not your meds fuckin’ with you?” Is he and the audience being gaslit?

What is obvious and explained early is that pre-face replacement George was a man of questionable actions, and the new George has to reckon with it, much like Geena Davis’s character in The Long Kiss Goodnight (1996) or the titular mystery man in The Bourne Identity (2002; especially in the better 1980 Robert Ludlum novel).

Just who is the mysterious tall, willowy, and beautiful redheaded woman, Sophie (Alex Essoe, who has recently been Wendy in 2019’s Doctor Sleep, and a regular in 2020’s Netflix mini-series “The Haunting of Bly Manor”)? He doesn’t remember her, but she certainly knows him. The bigger question is if she’s connected to George or the original face owner? Or perhaps both?

As is a common theme in these memory loss kinds of pictures, there are flashes of remembrances that make no sense to either the character or the audience due to context, but I have learned to wait it out, because it all tends to come clear by the end as the past and the present come colliding together, usually violently (I am halfway through at this point; yes, I write as I watch).

The gore is brief but graphic, and the scar make-up is incredibly well done. As a sidebar, I must add that with the twisted scar around George’s mouth and bruises around the eyes, he looks a bit like the medical staff in the infamous “Eyeof the Beholder”  episode of “The Twilight Zone” (1960, with Donna Douglas). One of my pet peeves on a lot of action shows, be it film or tv, is that when someone is hurt, they will have a really nasty cut (usually on the brow), and the next “day” it is just a line, and then it’s gone in less than a cinematic week; “Young Wallander” comes to mind as an example. So not realistic, but cheaper on the make-up budget. Here, George gets some bruises, and they are there for the duration, as the main part of the film (post-hospital) takes place over a few days. Not only that, but with wear and tear…and punches, etc., as time goes by he actually looks worse for wear than he did at the beginning. Kudos and thank you to the relatively large make-up crew who did such a smash-up job (pun intended).

Meanwhile, George is having issues with his family and the two thugs out to get their money owed to him in his previous life. As is common in these thriller kinds of films (i.e., non-supernatural), there’s crime, double crosses, and plot twists, all working together to that explosive ending I mentioned earlier. All I can say about the conclusion, though, is that I would have loved a postscript on one year later.

The film does get a bit confusing on who is who and the whys here and there, but generally it keeps the interest, especially by the half-way point. Luckily, the beauty of the visuals kept drawing me in. My one real quibble is that the sound is sometimes either too low or mumbled for my decrepit ears (too many live Ramones [etc.] concerts in my youth).

Whatever the weak points are, they are well overshadowed by the artistic merit that was put into the final work. Overall, its feel reminded me of Blood Simple (1984), a film that I felt had some issues but liked, and it ended up becoming considered as a classic. This has that kind of hallmark, leaning in that direction.

The film is full of bubbling under actors, with lots of credits in both films and television series, sometimes as semi-regulars. In other words, even though this is a solidly independent feature, the cast is strong without any of the usual acting foibles associated with this kind of budgeted film. Combined with director Sarmiento’s skills, this is a strong contender.

The film is available in digital formats, as well as DVD as of March 2, 2021.

Horror Shorts Reviews: February 2021

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

Filmmakers, please note: It is important that you list your films on IMDB. Going forward, I will not review a film that is unlisted, and I have seen a few good ones that are not.

Horror Shorts Reviews for February 2021

 

Covivid
Directed by Diego Vincentini
Indiegocinema
15:12 minutes, 2020

www.facebook.com/covividshortfilm
The one positive about the whole COVID-19 pandemic is the amount of art that is coming out of it. In this case, this whole horror comedy was done – cast and crew – by Vincentini’s immediate family (mother, father, sister), his sister’s boyfriend, and Diego’s friend. Our protagonist, played by the director (so let’s call him Diego), arrives at what I believe is the family vacation home, dressed in full hazmat gear. His family is stuck in the airport because of shutdowns, so he is alone. As Johnny Thunders’ said, “And when I’m home / Big deal, I’m still alone.” The thing is, of course, Diego is easily bored and hates being by himself. As the days pass, he is running out of things to do besides drinking, literally talking to himself, and – err – taking matters in hand. Then he starts to hear things beyond himself, which eventually start to manifest (shades of Gerald’s Game). Is this an evil spirit or, as Diego’s lonely cabin fever insanity grows, something else? There are quite a few spooky moments, and a lot of humorous ones. Moments come and go quite quickly, so it’s good to pay attention to what is being said as well as what is happening.  Definitely worth a view.
Full film HERE 

 

First Bite
Directed by Vincenzo Nappi
Canux Pictures
6:10 minutes, 2020
Would a bathroom in a venue housing a metal concert be anything less than disgusting, even in charming and beautiful Montreal? That doesn’t stop lovely Alex (Catherine Saindon) from driving the porcelain bus after an incident that will change her life. Her friend, Olivia (Hana Kashaf) is concerned outside the door. All of the action happens within the bathroom, or just beyond its entrance way, but still manages to avoid feeling too claustrophobic. At some point, you see the ending coming, but that does not stop it from being perfectly charming in its horror. The effects look good, as does the lead, and though this isn’t a deep introspective that will leave you wondering, it will instead be short, sweet, and satisfactory in the best sense.|
Full film HERE 

 

Halloween Spirit
Directed by John H. Shelton
5:04 minutes, 2021
Rather than a narrative tale, this is more of a mood piece, as various narrators read poetic renderings about the coming of the Halloween holiday with hushed voices and malevolent, flat (Ƅ) tones. With ghouls and goblins in the air and witches stirring their pots preparing, we see images of Halloween lawn ornaments, leaf covered trails through the wood with some fun Instagram-type filters imposed, and even a clip from Shelton’s previous short film, “The Crimson Video” (2020). It’s dark and whimsical at the same time.
Full film HERE 

 

Killing Floor – A Murderer Speaks
Directed by Henrique Couto
New Dynamic
9:37 minutes, 2020
www.patreon.com/Incrediblyhandsome
Based on a play by Andy Copp, a court-sanctioned psychiatrist (Couto stalwart John Hembrick, with a goatee!) is assigned to assess McCraken (Jeremy Rhynes), in prison, to see if he is mentally culpable. If not, does that mean they will Release the McCraken? Sorry… Anyway, the reason for the assessment is that McCraken claims he is possessed by a demon, and discusses his youth in third-person (i.e., “he” instead of “I”). He turns the tables and starts to interrogate the doctor, seeming to know more about him than the doc is willing to admit even to himself. Could this alleged supernatural monster be finding the human monster in the doc? The film is essentially the two of them talking. Rhymes carefully spits out his words and Hembrick emotionally runs scared well. Despite the lack of physical action, just the two of them talking is tense, like the talks between Hannibal and Clarise in The Silence of the Lambs (1991). The fun of the film is watching the cat and mouse between them, but of course, the question must be asked, which is the cat and who is the mouse.
Full film HERE 

Killing Time
Directed by Scott Lake
HMF Productions; Romero Pictures Indie Brigade
16:43 minutes, 2019
www.mdb.com/title/tt10703630/?ref_=tt_mv_close  
Co-produced and co-written by George C. Romero, son of George A. Romero, this horror-kinda sci-fi sort of fits well with George A.’s canon. I could go into some other films that I can see as precursors or influences, but I won’t because it would give too much away. In the middle of the night, a masked man appears in a house, where he seems quite familiar. He takes some questionable actions (such as removing his gloves, among others), and then does unspeakable deeds that, again, I will not reveal, but it is quite shocking. He wakes the male house occupant, Ethan (Jay Allen Tucker) and then the sci-fi part starts. I’m purposely being vague because, with a short, it is very easy to give away too much. I figured out a major part of it, but not the motivation or the how. With the droning help of the music by Bastard Sons of a Judas Goat (great name) that sounds a lot like Dario Argento’s Goblin, the tension is kept taught, and even though filmed in an unlit house, the visuals are pretty clear. Nicely creepy, unexpectedly violent, and mildly bloody, considering the per capita body count. Worth a view (as of this publishing, it is on the festival circuit).
Trailer TBD

 

Waffle
Directed by Carlyn Hudson
10:58 minutes, 2020
www.waffletheshort.com/
In this Internet-based age, one can purchase just about anything, even a best friend – for a set time and a fee. Lonely and wacky waffle heiress Katie (Katie Marovich) has such an arrangement with Kerry (Kerry Barker). But, of course, in this horror comedy, things aren’t all they seem to be. With quite a few twists and turns, we learn that we are unsure of whatever happened to Katie’s parents, and she seems to be confident to getting her way. Her and Kerry’s sleepover gets darker and darker as the night wears on, and the viewer may wonder, who is the one who is in danger here, and what relationship is real? It’s all answered by the end (filled with ‘80s style synth music), and it’s very satisfying. Marovich and Barker wrote the film, and their experience shows, as they are popular on the CollegeHumor website. What is nice is that there is no time wasted, and all 11 minutes, including the credits, are attention grabbers.
Full film HERE 

Review: The Midas Touch

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

The Midas Touch
Directed by Tilman Borck
FTB Productions; Indie Rights Movies
110 minutes, 2020
https://www.themidastouch.online/

In the words of Seth Meyers, “what we need right now” is a good sexually religious farcical comedy that is not afraid to push that proverbial envelope to beyond its flap. Director, writer, and actor Tilman Borck dips his – err – toe into the pool with this updating of the Greek legend of King Midas, but with a tug n twist, if not several.

Gino Wilson

We are introduced to milquetoast Felix Blythe (Gino Wilson), who is a low-level advertising drone in an office. Unlike the meaning of his name – “Felix” is happy and peppy, “Blythe” (blithe) indicates carefree – Felix is a humdrum worker who is constantly bullied by his boss Ron (Clayton Nemrow) and co-workers, and looked down upon by others for his shy spirit. While he has literal dreams of sexual exploits with beautiful women, in actuality, like the chartered accountant in the Monty Python’s Flying Circus sketch, his life is “dull, dull, dull…” He is a “very quiet man in a very loud world.”

The other main characters are the polar opposite of Felix, in that they are colorful, but bizarre. There’s self-help guru Sviatoslav Rău (the director, Borck) and his hapless Sidekick (Bernhard Bozian), both of whom dress as if it were the 19 Century, with cane and cape; a Trump-ish self-centered right-wing politician James Walker (Nicolas Buitrago); and his sensuous and statuesque wife, Sarah (Transylvania-born Noémi Domokos), upon whom Felix has a crush. Sarah also runs a small religious cult comprised of women.

Tilman Borck, Bernhard Bozian

While drowning his sorrows, Felix manages to inherit the titular Midas Touch. In a nutshell, it is a hex that can become a curse, even to him. This is not a fairy tale so it does not make princesses fall in love with whomever they touch, but rather makes them hornier than a hoot owl. But can Felix live – err – up to it? Even a young man needs to recoup. I remember a line by comedian David Brenner saying that after once, for him it was something like trying to chop down a tree with an overcooked asparagus. How much of a good thing is too much?

Anyway, what this means for the viewer is that there is plenty of onscreen (softcore) sex and full nudity of both men and women. Sure, this is a male’s fantasy, they make an emphasis about that, and there is even an anti-Feminist nod in the scroll at the bottom of a news report, but I will say that this is pandering to the male audience rather than trying to make a huge political comment about the role of sex. I would have liked to see what would happen if Felix touched a gay man, to see if it would affect that way as well. The film is reminiscent of sex comedies that were popular in mostly art houses and Times Square in the late 1960s and ‘70s, such as The Erotic Adventures of Robin Hood (1969) and Alice in Wonderland: An Adult Musical Fantasy (1976; the latter softcore version played at a neighborhood theater in which I was an usher).

Noémi Domokos

As the names of the actors may hint at, this is a European production (Germany, I believe), though filmed in crisp English for those who struggle with accents. 

It is smartly filmed, even initially with characters who have not yet met move in and out around each other as the story progresses and they keep passing or literally bumping into each other. But of course, by the end, all will converge, with the evil attempting to persuade the poor Felix.

The acting is kind of goofy, but again, this is an extremely broad comedy with a really low moral bar, and the over-emoting belies that, but it is also very funny in parts, with Rău being the oddest character with the best lines, and his reading of his “cult” speech is definitely a highlight of the film, reminiscent of the “Spanish Inquisition” bit from, again, Monty Python. Wilson is actually spot on in his character, as a squeaky mouse that finds his teeth. The Ron/boss character reminds me a lot of the similar Gary Cole role in Office Space (1999).

While mostly it is comedy and nekkidity, there is also surprisingly a body count (albeit relatively small), and some unexpected gore. It made me smile.

Cayton Nemrow

One of the interesting aspects of this film is that there is no real love interest for Felix, just an object of lust in Sarah. Usually, there’s a secondary or friend character who, at the end, becomes the heroine of the piece, and I find that truly different and admirable. Also, I enjoyed the O. Henry-ish surprise at the end.

There is an extremely large cast of extras here, which is also commendable. While ridiculous, it doesn’t fall into the sheer stupidity trap of the likes of some of the sex comedies from the States, like the Porky’s series or the those with Seth Rogan (sorry, but I am not a fan); perhaps it’s the European sensibilities.

Sure, parts of this are pure goof, but there is an undercurrent of smartness, a relish of skewering topics, and a joyousness in its total abandon. Add some decent filmmaking, and this is definitely watchable, especially for a first-time feature director. Honestly, though, I would not consider it a date movie as it is the antithesis of the Hallmark Channel fare, but rather along the lines of the old Cinemax Channel.

 

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.