Director: Drew Barnhardt
Year: 2018
Country: USA
Alternate Titles: N/A
Genre: Exploitation
Plot:
Returning home from the war, a grizzled war veteran trying to start his life over again finds himself in the company of a deranged bordello when he succumbs to a strange accident, forcing his skeptical sister to try to discover what happened to him and bringing her into direct contact with the group as well.
Review:
There was a lot to like with this one. Among it’s better qualities is the fact that the film’s exploitation elements are prominent and quite enjoyable throughout here. The setup here featuring the first interaction with the wife and the men who are encouraged to violate her the way they do with all the pre-show conditions and warm-ups that go on here which is brought to the forefront with the later revelation about the intent behind the situation. This is all done nicely in conjunction with the thugs searching his home later on where he gets attacked as a result of the encounter at the hotel and manages to lead nicely into a fine second-act twist that moves this one into a fun direction.
As well, that second half here goes a long way towards the fun final half present here based on this early setup. With the sister aware of the potential situation being true following the strong stalking scene in her house, the investigation into the incidents at the organization results in some of the best parts of the film. With the encounter at the doctors’ office with the fake receptionist turning out to be involved with the group and the entire series of confrontations that occur when she gets captured by the group and has to fight her way out of their psychotic clutches, this section of the film works exceptionally well providing this one with some great grindhouse finish that lifts this one up over it’s few flaws.
There are a few flaws here. One of the biggest problems here is the rather confusing nature this one goes through to start things off. The entire sequence of him watching the sexual acts on the girl is so dark and blurry that it’s impossible to make out what happened or why they’re chasing him, much less letting the group get a reason to chase him through the hotel which only becomes clearer through the later context given the actions taken. However, that’s not entirely known at the time it happens which continues on into other areas of the film. There’s little about the organization's way of operating that’s clear at all and with the entire means of why the need for the double-take that occurs here going unexplained there’s a lot of questioning what’s going on here.
As well, that leads into the film’s other real issue in that, once the grindhouse elements are over, there’s not much interest going on here. The fact that a large portion of the film is spent on trying to convince the sister he’s telling the truth and then setting up the overall revenge plot that takes place here just ends up grinding the film to a halt at the wrong section of the movie. Likewise, with this staggered pacing the fact that the film's main revenge segment is so grossly mishandled it's nearly a crime, with a blank matter-of-fact style that turns what should've been a big triumphant moment into a slow-motion ballet of squib-fire that just really turns out to be so uninteresting that it ends the film on a whimper unintentionally. These here are what hold this one down.
Overview: ***/5
Despite some minor issues with the pacing and some questionable decisions at times, overall the film has enough of a seedy grindhouse feel that gives off a really enjoyable tone here. This one is really worthwhile for fans of this kind of old-school grindhouse effort or curious about the project, while those not sold on the style or find the flaws detrimental should heed caution.
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