Short Film Review: THE HERD (2014) Directed by Melanie Light - Starring Pollyanna McIntosh

When the idea for The Herd was pitched on Kickstarter, I was very intrigued, and donated to the project. Now, several months down the line, the film has had its world premiere at Manchester's Grimmfest.

The simple, yet terrifying, premise here is a farm run by a group of sadistic captors, headed by the versatile and always brilliant Pollyanna McIntosh (Him Indoors, The Woman), who - rather than the usual cows - have a very sinister livestock - women. They are kept in cages in appalling conditions, raped and forced to have children, while the 'company' extract their milk.  But to what end?

Directed by Melanie Light (who also worked behind the scenes on Him Indoors), this short - pitched and billed as a 'vegan feminist horror' hits home like a punch in the gut. It's difficult to go into too much detail, as it would take away a lot from the viewing, but rest assured, it's a film that if not changing opinion or dietary choices, will certainly open some eyes and minds.

Writer Ed Pope has given us a powerful story which has been delivered by a team who literally have given their all. The whole cast are superb - Jon Campling and Dylan Barnes are suitably nasty cohorts of Pollyanna's head captor, and all the caged women - Charlotte Hunter and Victoria Bloom particularly - deserve a hell of a lot of credit. There's even an appearance from the lovely Sarah Jane Honeywell (The Eschatrilogy), who manages to keep her face clean, unlike the other actors.
As said, it's a very thought provoking and disturbing film, and certainly not one to 'enjoy', but I figure that wasn't the intention. It's a remarkable film, which manages to blend horror with a genuine ethical message. It will make you think.

Animal lovers should be warned the end credits play out inter-cut with scenes of actual bovine cruelty, so they may want to avert their eyes at that point.

9 out of 10

Review: Him Indoors (2012)

A couple of months ago, writer/director Paul Davis (who was behind the fantastic An American Werewolf In London documentary Beware The Moon) posted on Twitter (@kesslerboy) that he was looking to raise funds for a short film he was making, and set up a Sponsume page. The short would be a stepping stone and showreel for funding for his proposed full length feature previously announced, Silent Night of the Living Dead. Intrigued, I checked out the info and, liking the premise and admiring his Werewolf doc I put my money where my mouth is, and donated.

Gregory Brewster (Reece Shearsmith) is facing eviction after his mother's passing. She cared for him, and looked after all his needs as he suffers from agoraphobia. As well as the day to day things a mother would do, she always got a steady stream of people to house for Gregory to kill. Oh, yeah that minor point. Nice boy Gregory is a serial killer. So how to kill different people when you are afraid to leave the house? Well, delivery men provide a wonderful resource. As we meet Gregory he is preparing for a dinner date with the new neighbour, Lizzie (The Woman's Pollyanna McIntosh). "I had planned to do Italian" he tells the bound pizza boy in front of him, but removing his helmet to reveal he is an Asian, "But it looks like we're having Indian, instead"

Davis' script is witty and the humour pitch black, perfectly played by Shearsmith, who has had plenty of experience in dark, sinister yet funny characters (League of Gentlemen and Psychoville). Even at only 11mins long, the film manages to pack plenty into the narrative and and even a little peril, as Lizzie turns up at Gregory's a day earlier than he planned, throwing his carefully orchestrated arrangements into turmoil.
Of course, mental illness problems like agoraphobia are not really a laughing matter, but Davis handles this fantastically, drawing humour from the irony of a house bound serial killer rather than going for cheap and cruel laughs. Everything is so well executed (pun intended) that you wish it was a hell of a lot longer.
I would like to think the name Brewster was chosen as a nod to the murderous old women in Arsenic and Old Lace, but even if not, there's several things for the horror fan to look out for in the house decor, including a Rondo award and there's an appearance (of sorts) of American Werewolf alumni David ("You made me miss") Schofield, a fabulous actor who I have had the good fortune to have seen on stage a few times.

If Davis can make Silent Night of the Living Dead as enjoyable as this, then that will be an instant classic. This short is destined to be remembered fondly for many years to come, and if there's any justice, the doors should start being thrown open for a man with a definite vision, and thankfully, the talent to back it up.
The film is making its way around the film festivals (after premiering at FrightFest in London recently) including Manchester's Grimmfest, so keep an eye open for it and if you get the chance, DO check it out.
Oh, and pay attention to the end credits, and spot my name in there :)

Check it out.. I'm up there with Hitchcock and Tarantino!

10 out of 10

Retro review: Offspring (2009) -Jack Ketchum feral cannibal film

The film opens with a series of newspaper headlines over the credits chronicling the disappearance of a lighthouse keeper's family and the subsequent murders and child abductions taking place in the Maine area for the past 100 years.We then meet David and Amy Halbard a pair of computer game programmers (never really gone into, but they have a big PC set up) who, with their baby are living a nice, peaceful life in the countryside. One night, David (Andrew Elvis Miller) sees a naked girl at the bottom of his garden. Surprised, but not overly concerned, he tells his wife (Amy Hargreaves). Their friend, Claire (Ahna Tessler) and her son, Luke (Tommy Nelson) have come to stay, as she is in the middle of messy divorce from Luke's abusive father.

the author Jack Ketchum's time to shine

 

While they are there, her husband Steven (Erik Kastel) phones to say he is on his way to see them, obviously going to break all restraining orders and out to cause trouble. David gets on the phone to the police, and is told that they have no one to help them at the moment, as everyone is out looking for a murder. He should also arm himself and not let anyone in his home. Amused more than alarmed they carry on their business.

   

Meanwhile, the sheriff's department (who all look too young to be cops in these kind of out of the way places) have called on a former cop, George Chandler (Art Hindle - genre veteran from films such as The Brood) to help with their investigations of a brutal slaying at a nearby house, where all the occupants were gutted. George has had a case like this before, and it is what caused him to leave the service. He is certain they are dealing with a bunch of cave dwelling feral cannibals. How very perceptive.

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This pack have been living wild for the past hundred years, though quite why they take babies to raise as their own is not gone into. The leader of the flesh eaters is 'The Woman' (Pollyanna McIntosh) along side your typical wild man of the woods (Stephen Gray). This group look like the Hills Have Eyes mob if they hadn't had a wash for ten years. In their cave, is a cow (Ed Nelson) - that's how he's billed. Basically, a retarded adult who is their I assume as a pet when he's not been used for sex by the naked girl David saw in our introduction (Leigh Shannon). When she's not casing out houses in the buff, or flagellating herself, she's being whipped by the pack leaders.

 

So, to Claire's husband, Steven. He's on the road, and picks up a hitch hiker, who is just there really to show us what a sleazy nasty piece of work he is. Vodka bottle in one hand, breast in the other.

The idyllic peace of the family get together is shattered however, when the pack pay them a visit, taking the two women to their cave, and leaving young Luke to try and take the baby to safety. Steven's car is ambushed by them when he turns up, and he foolishly flees the police when they find out about the restraining order. I think he had bigger things to worry about!

 

The whole gang end up in the cave, and the brutality really begins, with Steven relishing his soon to be ex wife's suffering and humiliation at the hands (and mouths) of the clan.

 

Offspring is based on Jack Kelchum's novel, (itself a sequel to his book "Off Season"). Considering his involvement in the film (he wrote the screenplay as well as having a bit part), you'd think he'd have fleshed the characters out a bit more. The film is just under 80mins, and while it's full of gore (and is brutal in parts) we just don't care enough about the people in peril. Pollyanna McIntosh is incredibly believable as 'the woman', but was much better in the 'sequel' - more on that in a moment. I did think the inclusion of a scene of 'dialogue' between the two main cannibals was a little long considering we couldn't understand what they were saying.

The young actor playing Luke, is brilliant, which is good seeing as a big part of the climax depends on him.

The direction (by Andrew van den Houten who was only 30 when he made it) is a little all over the place, there seems to be no thought put into camera angles in some scenes, and in some the focus is a little off. At times, especially during the interaction between the police, I thought I was watching a 1970s grindhouse film. I'm guessing a big chunk of the already low budget went on the gore make up, which is very icky and well done. Watchable, but disappointing. 

4 out of 10

 

Now, what's puzzling me is why, since Lucky McKee's The Woman is doing big things at he moment, this film seems to have been buried. I can only assume they know it isn't as good as it should be and want to distance themselves. My first thought was it was a rights issue, different distributors, that sort of thing. Strange then that both films are made by the studio Modernciné. Andrew van den Houten is listed as a producer on The Woman. Almost NO reviews (except mine), or publicity for the film mentioned Offspring, other than it also being a Ketchum novel/film. There's no mention in the publicity of Pollyanna McIntosh coming back playing the same character. I'm just wondering why. I am more surprised that Offspring hasn't made a re-appearance on DVD (you can pick the UK one up quite cheap, the US one - put out under the "Ghost House Underground label has a ton of extras), you know how they usually cash in. Both films have a misogynist in the centre of it all, is that a recurring theme in Ketchum's work? I must admit I don't read as much as I should, so maybe I should check his books out. Oh, and in the opening of The Woman, she is bathing a stomach wound. At the end of Offspring, the wound is inflicted on the other side of her stomach. Sorry, being Mr Pedantic.