Hellbent on revenge for killing his kin, Lance first exterminates the undead with guns, and then breaks out his father’s sword, cause “it never runs out of bullets.” In order to save what’s left of humankind, Lance and Rachel head out to find the head reaper, but must also battle the demons in their head. Do they succeed? Are things truly as they appear? Guess you'll have to watch it in order to find out.
What plagues this movie is forced dialog, too much explanation of storyline, and low budget. And, even though flying blood is aplenty, almost all the action and gore are done as cutaways, and the battle scenes are drawn out to the point of exhaustion. I'd rather have seen a shorter film, than getting bored with the monotonous hack and slash. Having been involved in a NO-budget zombie flick myself, Undead on Arrival, I can probably appreciate it a little more than the average horror watcher, but still, there’s much to be desired.
The melancholy tone of the film and it’s characters fight against it, and even the special features carry this feel. For instance, the attitude and delivery of the writer and director, Doug Roos, is just blahzay, as he never even cracks a smile or seems excited about anything. With his even keel-ness, it’s almost like he was reading pre-written statements to questions asked. Come on, Doug, it’s your film, and you gotta be the hype-man. It's your job to sell me (and everyone else) on it!
But, even with it's flaws, there are times it shines, and the following scene of dialog made me laugh, because perverse thoughts kept popping into my head.
Rachel: Can I see it? (He hands his sword to her) Teach me something.
Lance: I’d rather not.
Rachel: And why’s that?
Lance: I don’t think you could keep up.
Rachel: Oh really?
Lance: Yeah.
Rachel: Well, I think you’re just afraid.
Lance: Afraid of what?
Rachel: Of me being better than you.
Lance: First, you’ve got to hold it right, like this. (She swings it) WOW! It’s okay, you’ll learn.
(Of course, one could say, “That’s what she said!” after several of these lines, but I also envisioned this leading to a porno scene (a la 1970's) with groovy music. Heh heh, it still makes me giggle.)
Although it’s not the best indie flick I’ve ever seen, and I had high hopes as it touts at least 10 awards and I'm always looking for hidden gems, I’d like to thank Doug for sending me a copy. For his next feature, I’d really like to see more personality come out (Will the real Doug Roos please stand up?), and also leave more of the plot for interpretation, rather than trying to explain it all. Still, he succeeded in keeping me confused, because I’m still not sure why, or even if, the sky has fallen…
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OVERALL RATING--2-- |
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