Review: 7th Day

We seem to be experiencing a bit of a renaissance as far as serial killer flicks go.  After a long period of very few interesting human monsters, a trio of impressive movies has surfaced.  Jason Hoover’s I Am No One blew me away, The Sleaze Box’s Amerikan Holokaust threw a new wrinkle into the tried and true formula, and Jason Koch’s 7^th Day brings us an engaging, darkly comic look into the mind of a madman.  It’s a splatter flick wrapped in a character study, and I’m happy to report that it works on both counts.

Synopsis: A pervert, murderer, and hopeless romantic, Allen Dean (Mark Sanders) is on a seven day journey to discovery his real true love. He is torn between Denise the waitress he believes he loves and his first true love, murder. Director Jason Koch adds a surreal tone to this violent tale seen through the eyes of a serial killer. We delve into Allen's life and thoughts as he prepares for what he believes to be his destiny, impending fame. A story of creation and destruction, cold and gritty with a touch morbid humor. More than a retelling of the modern serial killing mythology, 7th DAY examines every man's existence as Allen emulates what he thinks is normal behavior.

As we watch the events of a week in the life of a serial killer unfold, Allen (portrayed with pitch perfect awkwardness by Mark Sanders) provides us with a running commentary of his life.   The brilliance of the screenplay lies in the growing divergence between real life and Allen’s image of himself, his existence, and his purpose.  We see what’s actually going on in his world, but hearing him talk us through these scenes through his eyes paints a great picture of what it means to see reality through a lens of psychosis.  In his mind, everything he’s doing makes perfect sense.  Seeing him from a naturalized view while delving into his psyche makes him very real.  This isn’t the usual romanticized cinematic maniac.  This is a sicko you can actually picture existing in your town. 

That disparity between reality and… um, his reality is also where the humor shines through.  Oh yes! Don’t let all this talk of slaughter and mayhem fool you.  There are parts of this film that are laugh out loud funny in a pitch black way.  Then again, maybe I just have a f**ked up sense of humor.

The real strength of the film, and any serial killer flick really, is how human and scarily relatable Koch makes Allen.  Yes, he’s a psycho.  Hopefully none of us share his propensity for murder, but on a certain level it’s a story of a man dealing with mundane problems in his own way.  Who amongst us has never deluded ourselves into believing that we might have a chance with someone who’s out of our league?  Who can’t understand wondering if your neighbor might know something about you that you wish they didn’t?  Hell, I’d be willing to bet that more of us have had the particular near heart attack of talking to the cops while having something to hide than haven’t.  Sure, it might have come in the form of going through a roadblock with a bag of weed in your glove box instead of Johnny Law coming knocking when you have a corpse in the house, but to an extent his anxieties are the same as our own.  The fact of how uncomfortably close this character we see as repulsive and depraved comes to being relatable is the most frightening thing about 7^th Day.

The cinematography and editing deserve a mention.  The camera work is fluid without resorting to the wobble-cam that infests so many independent flicks these days.  Stephen Rubac (cinematographer) shows quite a knack for interesting shot composition.  Much of the film seems to have been shot hand held, but the shot remains steady.  This is especially appreciated during the murder sequences, where lesser filmmakers would employ a lot of amateurish camera tricks.  These guys have the good sense to give us a good look at what’s going on and let the action speak for itself.

As far as the gore, it’s top notch as expected.  That’s one of the things I love about effects artists like Mr. Koch stepping into the role of director.  More often than not, they make sure that the effects are up to snuff.  The gooey parts are all practical, there’s plenty of them, and they look great. The necrophilia, cannibalism, and gory dismemberment on dosplay may be a little much for the unadventurous, but the gorehounds will leave happy.

Random Thought #1: Probably my favorite thing in the flick is a character that functions as a physical manifestation of Allen’s delusions of grandeur.  A lot of people have seen fit to describe this character in their reviews.  These folks need a swift kick to whatever genitalia they happen to possess, because it’s much too brilliant a piece of business to spoil.

Random Thought #2: Has anyone else noticed the recent rise in people shitting themselves in movies?  When did that become a thing?

Random Thought #3: I wanna see Michael Brecher in more stuff.

If this recent spate of killer serial killer films is an indication of the direction the subgenre is headed, I’m all for it.  If 7^th Day, Jason Koch’s first feature, is an indication of what we can expect when he takes to the director’s chair, I’m all for that too. The combination of good gore, effective writing, and solid acting again proves to be a potent cocktail.   7^th Day takes you on a hell of a trip, displaying the extreme violence mankind is capable of while showing you that the sick mind of a killer is a little more like yours than you’re willing to admit.  Nathan says check it out.

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Review: Amerikan Holokaust

You can purchase Amerikan Holokaust HERE.

I know I’ve been away for a while, but never fear, Cellmates!  The Son of Celluloid is back to reviewing indie horror, and today we’ve got a real doozy.  When a movie is made by a couple of guys known for a web show called The Sleaze Box, you expect a certain level of nasty.  Amerikan Holokaust delivers on said nasty in spades.  Director Chris Woods and co-writer John Miller have made something that will disgust all but the most undisgustable (I’m trademarking that one), but it’s more than just vice and viscera.   Like good advice screamed in your face by a foul breathed, spittle spewing crackhead; the pervasive gore, nudity, profanity, and all around perversity actually have some underlying substance.

Synopsis: Michael Mashburn and his former Lieutenant, Antwan Mercer shelter themselves from the world to make a new beginning.  They start by abducting young men and women and torture them for their own amusement.  Their victims will be treated to the most vile and heinous manners you can ever imagine.  Some of them they will keep and force them to join their army, but most will all die a slow and horrible death.

If you follow underground horror at all, you know that “serial killers documenting their crimes” is not exactly a new concept.  In fact, it’s been done to death.  Amerikan Holokaust sets itself apart from the glut of cinema verite slaughter, however, by introducing a new ingredient to the formula.  This movie knows that it’s a movie.  It’s got some effectively jarring editing and a droning, dissonant noise soundtrack.  These sickos aren’t just recording funtime for posterity.  They’re using their recordings as part of a film project.  I’ve never seen anyone take that particular angle on this type of flick.  Not only are we looking at their activities, but their artistic vision as well.  It’s a novel, downright fascinating idea.  As well as they pulled it off, I wish they had taken the concept to its logical end and had the “editor” break the fourth wall and talk to the intended audience about the overall vision of the project.  That would have been an incredible “more meta than meta” moment.  Then again, it may have jeopardized a later plot twist so I can see why that didn’t happen.

One of the fortunate side effects of the flick not going the straight found footage route is that it remains much more visually interesting than most movies of this type.  The lighting changes.  Shots alternate between shaky hand held and static.  Even though it mainly takes place in the same house, the set decoration is such that different areas look different enough that it feels like a bigger movie than it is.  That, students, is how you maximize a miniscule budget (reportedly about a grand).

The two lead actors do an excellent job.  Jules Sciero (as Michael Mashburn) is the best actor in the film.  He manages to give a layered, sometimes even subtle performance in a role that could have easily been played as a cliché.  He’s a great storyteller too.  The viewer is just as engaged when Mash talks about his days in ‘Nam as when he’s eating eyeballs.  Bob Glazier, who plays Twan, goes the more over-the-top depraved route, and he is to be commended in the highest for his absolute fearless commitment to a balls to the wall, no limits performance.  These two have great chemistry and bring a necessary believability to the proceedings.  Cyndi Crotts is very good as Michael’s wife.  The victims range in quality from a game and capable Rue GoreGrinder to the gal who says “you can’t sell my baby” with all the emotion you’d expect from someone saying “no, you can’t have one of my fries.”  That’s to be expected though.  When casting a flick like this what an actress will subject herself to is usually more important than her thespian capabilities.

Now that the legitimate film criticism crap is out of the way, we can get down to what you’re really interested in with a flick like this.  Does it deliver the sickness?  Oh hell yes it does.  I’m about as jaded as they get as far as on screen horrors go, but I was pleasantly surprised at how far this one went.  Murder, torture, necrophilia, cannibalism, degradation, rape (not technically shown), and even coprophagia (turn “safe search” off and Google it if you’re not sure) are the order of the day.  Marcus Koch is responsible for the gore, so you know the messy parts are gonna look good.  It does get messy, too.  We’ve got eyeball extraction, gooified faces, and disembowelment (complete with sexual violation of the entrails) just for starters.  Trust me, this one isn’t for the delicate of constitution or the weak of stomach.

Random Thought #1: “What’s the use of being a rapist if you have to f**k with a condom?” is an early contender for horror quote of the year.

Random Thought #2: On the back of the box they refer to “…vial and heinous manners…”  Vial?  Really?  The word is Vile.  Grammar, people!  Grammar!  Get an editor.  That’s what people like me are for.

Random Thought #3: There’s one scene where the sound effects make it seem more like a bad attempt at humor than the brutal scene it should have been.

Random Thought #4: Man, Rue Goregrinder is hot.

Amerikan Holokaust is a flick with a little something for everyone… provided you’re an explorer of the video fringe with a taste for the extreme and sensibilities that are impossible to offend.  Do you just wanna revel in extreme violence?  Then you’ve come to the right place.  Do you wanna go all film school and delve into social commentary, character study, and cinematic technique?  This flick certainly lends itself to that.  Do you enjoy seeing good actors push themselves past limits most wouldn’t go near?  It’s got that too.  Do you like gratuitous boobs?  Check.  Is diseased old man pecker more your style?  Well, you’re in luck.  Amerikan Holokaust isn’t going to be for all tastes, but those to whom something like this is meant to appeal will definitely dig it.  Nathan says check it out.

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