THE CREEPS (Full Moon) - Blu-ray Review

USA/1997
Directed By: Charles Band
Written By: Neal Marshall Stevens
Starring: Rhonda Griffin, Justin Lauer, Bill Moynihan
Color/74 Minutes/PG-13
Region FREE
Release Date: February 21, 2017

The Film
A nervous but altogether mad scientist has been stealing original manuscripts of some of the world's most notorious horror fiction including Bram Stoker's Dracula and Mary Shelley's Frankenstein in order to bring these legendary characters to life to gain power. He successfully summons Dracula, Frankenstein, The Wolf Man and The Mummy, the only problem is that he made an error in the process and each of the monsters is a mini three feet tall. Now he needs a virgin to gain full control over the monsters and bring them to their full size and power.

THE CREEPS is an oddball black comedy horror film from director Charles Band. The film is very subdued in its violence with even the worst scene that involves a woman strapped naked to a table and subjected to an experiment that lands her in another dimension being notably light and almost breezy, never feeling mean or exploitative at all. The tone of the film holds it back from being a more successful and entertaining picture than if it went for a more horrific angle. I never felt that the monsters, who have a nicely designed classic look led by Phil Fondacaro as Dracula, were a true threat and the film does little to ever change that with the monsters pulling off more hijinx than scares.

Laughs are held in higher regard in THE CREEPS with Bill Moynihan starring as the stuttering, nervous and inept mad scientist being written solely for comedy or at least that is how it seems. Rhonda Griffin and Justin Lauer star as the main protagonists, a librarian trying to track down her stolen books and the private detective she hired from the back of a video store and they have a good chemistry on screen. The acting is all very hammy though but it fits the campy nature of the picture. When the dust settles I really wish THE CREEPS would have had some darker and more intense moments to really break up the monotony and one note tone of the film. It's not bad but it isn't among Full Moon's best output.

The Audio & Video
Full Moon has restored their film from the original 35mm camera negative for its high definition debut and it's never looked better. The overall image has a decent sharpness that leads to good detail levels. The film as a whole is a bit on the darker side in terms of lighting and there are some softer shots but overall the film looks nice and is a noticeable upgrade. The audio is crisp and without distortion or damage. Stereo 2.0 and 5.1 surround audio options are available.

The Extras
Special features include the original Videozone behind the scenes featurette from 1997 and a selection of trailers.

The Bottom Line
This new Blu-ray release is a nice visual upgrade over previously available editions but this isn't among the classic Full Moon titles.

THE CREEPS is available HERE

PEELERS (2017)

USA/2017
Directed By: Seve Schelenz
Written By: Lisa DeVita, Seve Schelenz
Starring: Wren Walker, Caz Odin Darko, Madison J. Loos
VOD Release Date: March 28, 2017

The final night of business at the Tittyballs strip club isn't the cakewalk owner Blue Jeans (don't call her BJ!) was probably hoping for as she prepares to sell to a skeezy businessman with questionable intentions. The night is full of drunks, a new girl dancing for the first time because a regular is about to pop with a baby, jealous boyfriends and a group of workers from the local coal mine that come in covered in a weird black oil substance that turns anyone that comes into contact with it in to a bloodthirsty maniac. Is it closing time yet?

Seve Schelenz returns for his second feature film after making Skew back in 2010 (previously reviewed HERE) with an overly gory splatterfest that isn't out of line from body melt films like Street Trash and Slime City though it is played straighter than either of those films and doesn't go for the day-glo look instead opting for a thick, black splatter that is vomited and spewed by the gallon. PEELERS will have no trouble attracting an audience with all of the blood and guts flying around in addition to the black sludge. The film is wildly bloody and nobody is off limits. CGI is mixed in with large amounts of practical effects and while it is immediately and definitely a noticeable shift from the practical stuff it isn't off putting.

PEELERS will stand apart from similar films that are released each month because it takes far greater care in its writing and characters than the majority of independent horror films even think about. We get real relationships built within the confines of the walls of this strip club and it all begins and ends with Wren Walker's performance as Blue Jeans. She's a tough but loving owner and a total bad ass chick. Walker is damn good and really carries the film while the support from her security guard Remy played by Caz Odin Darko is more of a straight forward performance that doesn't need any nuance but he plays it exactly how he should. He's a sympathetic character that most guys can relate to in one way or another. It's not just good performances but actual character development that make it such a good script.

PEELERS is a really solid horror film, I can't say it's perfect because it isn't but it is damn entertaining and even though it's not the most original premise and reminds me of countless movies that came before it, it is one of the better strip club horror movies I've seen to date and I had a great time with it. It's rare these days that a movie as splatterific as PEELERS has such a quality production. This one is definitely worth a look.

ATOMICA (2017)

USA/2017
Directed By: Dagen Merrill
Written By: Kevin Burke, Federico Fernandez-Armesto, Adam Gyngell
Starring: Sarah Habel, Dominic Monaghan, Tom Sizemore
In Theaters March 17, 2017
On VOD and Digital HD March 21, 2017

ATOMICA is an isolation thriller set in the not too distant future on a desolate nuclear power plant run by the world's power supplier Auxillisun. Abby (Sarah Habel) is a tech for the company and has been flown in to fix the communication issues present where she meets Robinson Scott (Dominic Monaghan) one of the two people working there. The other, Dr. Zek (Tom Sizemore), has strangely been missing for several days. The events leading up to Abby's arrival and everything she sees and experiences there don't add up but things only get weirder and more deadly when Dr. Zek turns up.

For a film that is being distributed by SyFy Films it has decent production values. Wisely the film is kept mostly to the confines of the power plant's interiors. The sparsely decorated, with only the sporadic computer screen or switchboard, sets add to the feeling of isolation and loneliness which can play tricks on the mind, a theme that the film comes back to again and again despite never really playing into the way things pan out. Even the exteriors which are obviously CGI and green screen aren't bad when there's nothing going on in front of the backgrounds but as soon as action starts happening in the CGI heavy areas it begins to look cheap.

The film doesn't reinvent the wheel but it doesn't really do this style of thriller all that well either. There's too many cases of false identity going on and a few massive plot holes along with subplots that don't go anywhere and are nothing but weak attempts at getting the audience to really gravitate and latch on to a certain character. That said, the cast is actually quite good and do the best with the script they have to work with. If ATOMICA was a wide release, major production I'd be harsher on it but it really isn't too bad when viewed among the ranks of the Syfy channel productions and distributed films. I wouldn't recommend you rush out to see it but if it pops up on a lazy Sunday afternoon you might get more enjoyment out of it than the same 15 year old reruns of COPS.

ONE MILLION YEARS B.C. (Kino Lorber) Blu-ray Review

UK/1966
Directed By: Don Chaffey
Written By: Brian Clemens
Starring: Raquel Welch, John Richardson, Percy Herbert
Color/100 Minutes/
Region A
Release Date: February 14, 2017
2x Blu-ray

The Film
A look at the tough and rugged life early humans had to live all while being hunted by massive man eating lizards, dinosaurs and bugs. ONE MILLION YEARS B.C. isn't historically accurate by any means but it is far more entertaining than a day spent in class.

It was ONE MILLION YEARS B.C. that broke out Raquel Welch as an international star and sex symbol. The film's main selling point is 100 minutes of the stunning Welch trouncing around in a fur bikini getting into all sorts of trouble. The film is mostly family friendly, with only a few moments that could be considered excessively violent, even for 1966. And even those moments fall short of some of the violence we saw from earlier Hammer productions but still nine minutes were trimmed from the US cut of the film. However Welch still brought a strong sex appeal and as we all know, sex sells and we all bought in.

Welch's sexiness wasn't all the film has to offer, not by a long stretch. The most obvious draw to the film, especially at the time of release was the special effects and creatures created by Ray Harryhausen which include classic scenes with a Pteranodon and Welch along with a epic fight scenes between the tribesman and an Allosaurus that gets a bit bloody. Alongside those classic scenes are giant Iguanas, Tarantulas, various other dinosaurs, ape men and more. Harryhausen's use of stop motion animation here is as good as it ever would be giving full life to each and every creature he designed. The sculpts have an exceptional lifelike quality and make for an exciting and believable cast of creatures and enemies. Director Don Chaffey was plenty experienced by the time he made ONE MILLION YEARS B.C. and was no stranger to fantasy adventure epics having previously directed Jason And The Argonauts, another Harryhausen special effects epic. He would go on to make a couple more films in the genre with 1967's The Viking Queen and 1970's Creatures The World Forgot, both Hammer productions. He proved more than capable of steering the production toward a glorious and successful finish with great set pieces and action scenes.

ONE MILLION YEARS B.C. may be light on plot, existing largely to show off a scantily clad Raquel Welch and yet another highlight reel of glorious Ray Harryhausen creatures, but it does manage to fulfill the promise that the opening narration tells us of the world being unfriendly and inhospitable and though there's no dialogue besides some grunting and a couple of names there's definitely and undeniable character development and meaningful relationships forged and broken during the course of the film. Brian Clemens' screenplay is breezy, quickly paced and filled with deadly encounter after deadly encounter but he proves you don't need page after page of talky characters spewing endless dialogue to have a film that can draw you in to it's characters and the story. At least not when there is Raquel Welch and Harryhausen monsters.

The Audio & Video
Kino Lorber has given a brand new 4K restoration to the film and it looks absolutely stunning. I don't think the prehistoric ages have ever looked this good! Colors are vivid and eye catching with bright blues and fleshy, natural skin tones. Detail is incredible from the fur and leather outfits to being able to separate individual grains of sand. The film has a healthy grain structure maintaining its original film look and feel and I couldn't be happier. The DTSHD audio is an audible winner as well. Crisp and pleasing to the ear, the sound features a perfect mix in levels, no distortions or damage of any kind and no background noise. I think it is safe to say ONE MILLION YEARS B.C. hasn't looked or sounded this good since its original theatrical run.

The Extras
-Audio Commentary With Film Historian Tim Lucas of Video Watchdog Magazine
-91 Minute US Cut
-"In The Valley Of The Dinosaurs" - Interview with Raquel Welch
-Interview with Ray Harryhausen
-Interview with actress Martine Beswick
-Animated poster and image gallery
-Trailers

The Bottom Line
ONE MILLION YEARS B.C. is pure adventure fun and it has never looked better! This is one you can (and will want to) watch over and over! You can count this Hammer fanboy as very satisfied.

ONE MILLION YEARS B.C. is available HERE

WITCHTRAP (Vinegar Syndrome) - Blu-ray Review

USA/1989
Directed By: Kevin S. Tenney
Written By: Kevin S. Tenney
Starring: James Quinn, Kathleen Bailey, Linnea Quigley
Color/91 Minutes/Not Rated
Region FREE
Release Date: March 28, 2017
Blu-ray/DVD

The Film
Fresh of the heels of his 1988 cult classic Night Of The Demons, Kevin Tenney was approached by producers who had funding ready to go and wanted a movie to invest in immediately. Within a week Tenney had the screenplay for WITCHTRAP ready to go and that is the screenplay about a group of paranormal experts and a couple cops who attempt to remove the benevolent spirits from Lauder House which has a history of unexplained violent deaths.

It's quite obvious off the bat that WITCHTRAP had a rushed script because the dialogue isn't very good at all but sometimes we get some really cheesy gold out of it, mainly from James Quinn who stars as Detective Vicente. There's few things to match the greatness of dialogue exchanges such as:
-"I resent that."
-"I resent your mother for taking drugs while she was pregnant."

and

-"Listen, I didn't miss anything."
-"Yeah, except the last stage of evolution."

That's gold, folks. And Adding to the campiness of the dialogue is the fact that the entire movie had to have its sound and dialogue added in post thanks to a total fuck up by the sound engineer on set.

It wouldn't be fair to WITCHTRAP to solely lump it in with other so-bad-it's-good movies, which it could certainly be classified as but it has an undeniable gothic moodiness to it and a surprisingly mean spirit (no pun intended) to it. Look no further than the groundskeeper's death scene to see what I mean - down right cold blooded. Along with the mood is a very cool way of showing the malevolent spirit only through camera lenses for the early part of the film which adds a spooky element that only the audience is privy too leaving the characters in the dark and knowing he could be lurking anywhere at any moment.

WITCHTRAP doesn't forget its 80s roots and provides quite a few gory moments from a memorable shower scene not just for the violent death but for some quality nudity as well along with a head explosion that rivals Scanners. The gore and violence is shown in amounts never before seen here as the film was subjected to several cuts by the MPAA upon its original release and Kevin Tenney has given us the true version never before available.

WITCHTRAP is definitely campy and cheesy and very much a film of the 1980s, more specifically a rushed film of the 1980s but there's also really solid production values that make the film feel completely legitimate and more expensive than it was. It has a silly sense of humor along with a great mood and some serious creepy and violent moments.

The Audio & Video
Vinegar Syndrome presents WITCHTRAP with a new 2K scan and restoration from the the 35mm Interpositive and frankly it looks fantastic. There's a thin but natural looking grain structure over the film maintaining an organic film look and feel. Colors are reproduced beautifully from the plentiful deep blood reds to the moody and overcast grays. Black levels are deep while skin tones are lively and healthy looking with no signs of DNR. The DTS-HDMA 2.0 audio mix comes through crisp and clear with perfectly mixed levels. There's no hiss or distortions and no background noise. The mix is simplistic but is of a very high quality and perfectly works for the film in it's original form.

The Extras
This Blu-ray is absolutely stacked with special features including:

-Audio Commentary track with Director Kevin Tenney, Producer Dan Duncan, Cinematographer Tom Jewett, and Actor Hal Havins.
-Video Interview with Writer/Director Kevin Tenney
-Video Interview with Actress Linnea Quigley
-Video Interview with Cinematographer Tom Jewett
-Video Interview with Special Effects Supervisor Tassilo Baur
-Audio Interview with Makeup Artist Judy Yonemoto
-Audio Interview with Composer Dennis Michael Tenney
-Original Video Release Trailer
-"Book Of Joe" - Short film by Kevin Tenney with alternate ending
-Still Gallery
-Reversible Cover Art

The Bottom Line
You may have seen WITCHTRAP before but you haven't seen it like this. Between presenting the film uncut for the first time anywhere, the gorgeous transfer and the overflowing bounty of special features it is easy for me to say that Vinegar Syndrome's Blu-ray of WITCHTRAP is the definitive release of the film. Highly recommended!

WITCHTRAP is available HERE

EASTER SUNDAY (Camp Motion Pictures) DVD Review

USA/2014
Directed By: Jeremy Todd Morehead
Written By: Jeremy Todd Morehead
Starring: Jeremy Todd Morehead, Jason Delgado, Robert Z'Dar
Color/95 Minuets/Not Rated
Region 1
Release Date: March 14, 2017

The Film
I don't get the trend of making intentionally bad and/or stupid horror films. Plenty of B-movies of days past were entertainingly bad but very few were made to be shitty on purpose. The filmmakers set out to make a movie the best they could and for any number of reasons it turned out to be shit. Most of the time those movies were nothing more than shit but sometimes something struck a chord with audiences and a movie was beloved for all the wrong reasons. Now it has become a trend to make throwback style horror and exploitation pictures and make them stupid and shitty on purpose and it needs to stop. EASTER SUNDAY falls into this category.

Let it be known that I have no problems with intentional campiness in a movie, not everything needs to be high art, but there is big difference between campy and purposely stupid. EASTER SUNDAY is a slasher movie that tries to replicate the genre's golden years of the 1980s with it's plot, score and overall aesthetic and it could have been a successful and memorable slasher film for this era if it had taken itself just the least bit serious. Instead,  the writing and casting seem like they were too concerned with writing the next dumb line of dialogue that isn't funny or trying out another stupid voice to overdub a character with. Had this movie put a bit of effort into getting any sort of actual performance from their cast and written even a mildly competent script EASTER SUNDAY would be a fun little body count film as it does have a simple yet effectively designed killer. Unfortunately he has an obnoxious voice that sounds like it came from a wise guy cartoon character designed to get on your last nerve. Every line delivered by the killer sounds like it's meant to be a punchline to a joke that was never set up and doesn't make any sense.

I wanted to like EASTER SUNDAY and there are things about it that I did enjoy such as the fun it has with it's special effects and gore even if they're on the cheap side like spaghetti guts, it made me smile. Robert Z'Dar is a welcomed addition as the cop and there's a couple of genuinely funny lines dealing with his character. The heart of an entertaining and solid slasher are all there but I think EASTER SUNDAY took a wrong turn early on in deciding what they wanted the movie to be and there's no recovering from making a movie intentionally bad.

The Audio & Video
Camp Motion Pictures' DVD of EASTER SUNDAY features a 1.78:1 anamorphic widescreen transfer that has an artificial filter over the picture to make it look like an aged and slightly worn print from the 80s. This gives the film a greenish blue tint with faux speckling and grain throughout. The picture quality is still good overall with fine amounts of detail and colors poking through. The audio sounds fine and is right in line with the picture quality. The score by Dave Ferguson, which is probably my favorite part of the entire movie, sounds crisp and shines through. Levels are steady and mixed well.

The Extras
A mini behind the scenes documentary is included along with a trailer.

The Bottom Line
I'm not a fan of the style and vibe this movie went for but if you're more forgiving with intentionally bad movies then you may enjoy it more than I did.

EASTER SUNDAY is available HERE

SLASHER.COM (DVD Review) - Cinedigm

DVDUSA/2017
Directed By: Chip Gubera
Written By: Chelsea Andes, Chip Gubera
Starring: Ben Kaplan, Jewel Shepard, R.A. Mihailoff
Color/90 Minutes/Not Rated
Region 1
Release Date: March 7, 2017

The Film
Jack and Kristy have just met for the first time after talking through an online dating site. Their first date is a weekend trip to a relaxing cabin in the woods. Soon after arriving they meet the murderous family residing in the same woods as their cabin and must fight for their lives.

On the surface SLASHER.COM has a simple and familiar plot with a set up that could be countless other horror films Under the surface it attempts to throw twist after twist at the viewer but each is so obvious that if you're not batting a thousand on figuring out twists long before they happen you're simply not paying attention. The production itself is competent with a cast that is passable when they're not overacting and okay special effects.

There came a moment in the second act where the movie became so painfully serious in everything it was doing and saying that I felt like my mother had just slapped me upside the head with a frying pan while warning me about the dangers of online dating. Who in their right mind would go away for a weekend with someone they had just met anyways? At least the film attempts to explain away that giant lapse in normal people logic by having each of the characters have their own motives for getting into a situation like that but it still hurts the reality in which a slasher film about online dating needs to maintain. There's also a scene that perfectly represents what my friend Derrick Carey has coined "Chair Horror". You know, a dimly lit scene with someone tied to a chair enduring some sort of torture for a a scene that lasts entirely too long and is meant to disturb the audience. Yeah we get some of that thrown in for good measure and filmmakers need to find better ways to shock the audience because these $5 sets (a chair, some rope and an empty room) are just so overdone and underwhelming that I've had more than enough of them.

There is a bright spot to SLASHER.COM and that's the two main antagonists played by Jewel Shepard and R.A. Milhailoff. Jewel is famous for her role in Return Of The Living Dead and for that I appreciate seeing her around and she gave what I'd consider to be the best performance of the movie. Mihailoff portrayed Leatherface in the third installment of the Texas Chainsaw Massacre franchise and he's a genuinely imposing figure and someone you can believe could create some mayhem in the backwoods. Otherwise this film is far too heavy handed in everything it does, it has a weak message and is too concerned with how many twists it can throw at us to ever deliver anything of value.

The Audio & Video
Cineidgm releases SLASHER.COM on DVD with an anamorphic widescreen transfer that looks decent for the most part. Colors and lighting are often natural and the overall picture quality is clean and clear. There are moments however where it appears equipment of far less quality was used and it looks as if you're watching the movie through a mesh screen. The 2.0 stereo English audio mix sounds fine with no background noise or damage. The levels are steady with the dialogue and soundtrack being complimentary to each other.

The Extras
This is a bare bones affair.

The Bottom Line
Skip it.

SLASHER.COM is available HERE

MONDO WEIRDO/VAMPIROS SEXOS Press Relesae

 MONDO WEIRDO / VAMPIROS SEXOS Premieres on BLU-RAY/DVD March 14, 2017

Los Angeles, CA (March 6, 2017.) Cult Epics presents Carl Andersen’s films, the European answer to the Cinema of Transgression of Richard Kern and Nick Zedd, except more extreme, eccentric, surreal and erotic. 

“The Hard-core version of Eraserhead” –Jan Doense (Weekend of Terror)

MONDO WEIRDO: A TRIP TO PARANOIA PARADISE aka JUNGFRAU IM ABGRUND wallows in smut, sleaze, gore, splatter, and dark comedy and is set in an underground world where both vampires and punk rockers engage in hardcore sex to the highly addictive and hypnotic electro music of Model D’oo. Dedicated to Jean Luc-Godard and Jess Franco featuring his daughter Jessica Franco-Manera. Shot on 16mm stock, presented in a new High-definition transfer on Blu-ray. 

“Vampire Porno”

VAMPIROS SEXOS aka I WAS A TEENAGE ZABBADOING… is Carl Andersen’s debut film and is one of the weirdest movies ever, and it will certainly shock your mind. VAMPIROS SEXOS is the ultimate European underground punk rock sex vampire film. Stylish and trashy at the same time in the best sort of way, the film also features an endlessly entrancing no-wave score by Model D’oo. Cult Epics presents the rare only existing Uncut SD version on DVD together with:  WHAT’S SO DIRTY ABOUT IT? Bonus short film. Cut-up trance noise nihilistic short film, reminiscent of the work of Throbbing Gristle and Kenneth Anger. SD 

3 Disc Limited (numbered) Edition of 2000 copies includes Exclusive CD soundtrack by Model D’oo.

MONDO WEIRDO/VAMPIROS SEXOS Blu-ray/DVD/CD Combo

Price:                              $39.95

Street Date:                              March, 2016

Production Year:                     1988/1990/1990

Film run time:                 Approx. 68/57/9

Language:                                English & German language with English subtitles

Aspect Ratio:                           1.33:1

Audio:                                      Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo

Label:                                       Cult Epics

Distributor:                              CAV 

Blu-ray/DVD/CD Cat.no.       CE-149

BD UPC:                                 881190014998

Rating:                                     Not Rated

SPECIAL FEATURES

New High-definition Transfer (from original 16mm print)

Introduction by Erwin Leder (star of Angst)

The Making of Mondo Weirdo (2016)

               The Making of I was a Teenage Zabbadoing aka Vampiros Sexos (2016)

               Bonus film: What’s So Dirty About It? (1990)

BLOODRUNNERS (Blu-ray Review) - Speakeasy Pictures

USA/2017
Directed By: Dan Lantz
Written By: Dan Lantz, Michael McFadden, Adam Danoff
Starring: Ice-T, Michael McFadden, Airen DeLamater
Color/95 Minutes/Not Rated
Region A
Release Date: March 7, 2017
Blu-ray/DVD

The Film
Ice-T is Chesterfield, an ancient vampire who has opened a new speakeasy in prohibition era New England. When the local sheriff Jack Malone comes to collect his "tax" the corrupt officer gets more than he bargained for when he finds out the club is actually a vampire lair.

BLOODRUNNERS has a lot going for it like the charisma and attitude that Ice-T brings to everything he does and a really solid production design that has minor flaws but is very believable of a prohibition era town. The cast is good and when the movie is interested in being a vampire horror film it succeeds even if the special effects aren't always amazing. Unfortunately the script is a bit too busy with a couple subplots that try to add depth to a couple of the characters and their motives but in reality just slow things down and takes their eyes off the prize.

There's an obvious connection here to From Dusk Til Dawn with a vampire lair hiding out in a bar and when BLOODRUNNERS is doing a 1930s version of FDTD it's an entertaining picture but too much of the picture is spent on the subplots and Ice-T is vacant for stretches that last too long but when he's allowed to shout his lines with a certain ignorance and ferocity that shouts "Fuck you, I'm Ice-T and I'm a vampire, bitch! Where's my money?!" the picture is at its best and most enjoyable. Unfortunately the biggest name in the film gets lost in the shuffle a bit too much.

The Audio & Video
The Blu-ray from Speakeasy Pictures is quite good. The 1:85:1 anamorphic widescreen transfer is clean and sharp with the 1080p HD quality giving way to strong detail and vivid colors. Black levels are deep and there's no signs of excessive DNR or edge enhancement. The 5.1 Dolby Digital audio is crisp and clear with steady levels and a quality mix job. There's no distortions or imperfections and English, Spanish and French subtitles are available.

The Extras
-Audio Commentary with Co-Writer/Director Dan Lantz and Co-writer/Star Michael McFadden
-Deleted Scenes
-Extended Scenes
-Gag Reel
-Trailer

The Bottom Line
BLOODRUNNERS has some fun scenes but doesn't make the most of an interesting idea. Worth a watch but this isn't destined to become a classic.

BLOODRUNNERS is available HERE

LAVENDER (2017)

Canada, USA/2017
Directed By: Ed Gass-Donnelly
Written By: Colin Frizzell, Ed Gass-Donnelly
Starring: Abbie Cornish, Dermot Mulroney, Diego Klattenhoff
In Theaters and on VOD and Digital HD: March 3, 2017

LAVENDER stars Abbie Cornish as Jane, a wife and mother who is suffering from Amnesia after a car accident. While her memory returns she begins to have memories of a family she didn't know she had and visions of the murder of that family that she may have committed.

LAVENDER is a slow burn psychological and somewhat supernatural thriller centered around Jane along with her daughter and her strained relationship with her husband. She has minor flashes of memories from a life she doesn't know and has memory loss when it comes to small things like appointments. She photographs abandoned houses for her art gallery, fascinated by the life that once thrived within the walls of the now derelict buildings. After her accident she finds out a bit about her past and that she owns a house she has been photographing and that it's been kept up by her uncle. Upon returning to this house strange things start happening to Jane and her daughter until the haunting and sickening truth of her past comes boiling to the surface.

The pacing of LAVENDER could have been a problem but it ends up being one of the film's greatest strengths if you can get beyond the first 25 or 30 minutes. After that the film keeps growing into something more interesting but sadly it never gets to anything interesting enough. The film is predictable and dull with Abbie Cornish sleepwalking her way through the film. The film doesn't know if it wants to take a psychological thriller approach or if it would rather be some sort of supernatural ghost film as it fails at doing both. LAVENDER could be worse but it could have been a lot more interesting with a more focused approach.