Film Reviews: DEAD SNOW, TREEVENGE, GRACE and THE KILLING ROOM

One might wonder what Nazi Snow Zombies, re-animated fetuses, and blood-thirsty X-mas trees have in common. But if so, she has not attended the 2009 Sundance Film Festival. Luckily for me, I did and I experienced all of these delightful horrors and more. People are often surprised when I return from this A-List fest having watched more horror films than the more oft-expected quirky relationship dramas and heart-wrenching political docs, but Park City is filled with all manner of horrors if one knows where to find them.

Following are some of the highlights of this year's offerings:

DEAD SNOW

Why they didn't title this little Norwegian gem "Nazi Snow Zombies Kick Ass" is beyond me. In a nutshell, three couples go to a remote cabin in the snowy mountains and, lo and behold, bad things happen. What's not to love about that?

What works best about this film is that it makes no pretense of being anything other than a ridiculous celebration of fun, gory goodness and it delivers in spades. We waste little time with character development or detailed set-ups. Rather, we learn upfront that one character can't stand the sight of blood, one is claustrophobic, another is a med student and one makes constant movie references. We're enlightened right away as to how to tell which way is up when caught in an avalanche. Then, the quintessential creepy local tells the gang the legend of the evils of the land.

Well-equipped with the necessary exposition, we know what to expect and can only delight in the creative, humorous and delightfully gory events that unfold. DEAD SNOW is precisely what a contemporary zombie movie should be - the perfect blend of cinematic inventiveness, joyous humor and creative gore that promotes a healthy dose of audience participation. Highlights include snappy one-liners - "I told you we should have gone to the fucking beach!" the funniest self-mutilation scene ever (so that's why we needed to know he was a med student!) and a literal "intestinal cliffhanger" that will no doubt go down in the zombie hall of fame.

It's hard to make an original zombie film in today's over-saturated market, but this one offers some fun new tricks and manages to feel fresh while still paying homage to beloved zombie films of yore. A gut-busting, good time for the zombie enthusiast who likes tongue firmly implanted in cheek and remaining body parts splattered everywhere else.

TREEVENGE

Kudos to the Sundance programmer who decided to precede DEAD SNOW with this masterfully produced short that is basically the I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE for Christmas Trees. Seriously. We see beautiful firs violated, chopped down, and forcefully removed from their beloved forest by the most monstrous of lumberjacks who haul them to one of those yards to be sold off as Christmas trees. Shot for under $5,000, the production values are stellar and made all the more impressive with beautiful snowy landscapes and real X-mas tree-hauling trucks. This is a beautiful film.

But, as the genre dictates, the true magic lies in the kills. Borrowing from the likes of early Sam Raimi and Peter Jackson, these fanboy filmmakers have incorporated Troma-esque gore sensibilities with a polish and craft that defies this from being labeled as a mere B-movie. This is a true work of art and clearly made with love. I can't wait to see these guys' first feature.

GRACE

How exciting to see Paul Solet's first feature premiere at Sundance. For those who've caught his shorts on the festival circuit over the past few years (MEANS TO AN END, the short version of GRACE), you already know Solet delivers solid gore, horror and good filmmaking. But, what his earlier works might not indicate is that he can write a smart, socially-relevant, mature script and direct some fine performances on a real, 35mm budget. Yay!

Imagine if Roman Polanski were to direct LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS only with a baby instead of a plant and in a contemporary context. GRACE tells the story of a socially-conscious vegan who wants to give birth to her baby in the most natural way possible. She refuses conventional medical care in favor of a midwife. At the get-go, Solet is sensitive in his portrayal of her choices while also acknowledging her husband's and in-laws different perspectives.

The real conflict comes when she's rushed to the hospital and told that her baby has died inside of her. Not willing to give it up, she announces she will carry it to term. But where Solet really delves into interesting territory is when (minor spoiler alert) her husband dies and she exhibits no remorse for his death. None too surprisingly, her sheer determination eventually reanimates her dead fetus and then things get really messy. Naturally, this undead baby will only feed on human blood.

How fascinatingly hypocritical to see a vegan show such concern for other animals' well-being, yet so blatantly disregard human life. Her rapid descent into anemia and madness is reminiscent of Polanski's REPULSION, while simultaneously conjuring visions of ROSEMARY'S BABY as the twisted tale explores contemporary reproductive and parenting perspectives with horrifying results.

The performances are strong and the film supplies endless fodder for great post-viewing discussion. It's beautifully shot and has some great and well-chosen special effects. That said, the film is hardly flawless. The third act is somewhat dissatisfying, failing to address some of the questions raised early on (in particular an interesting subplot about lactation obsession). Also, after so much careful consideration is put into the set-up, it feels a bit careless in regard to logic at times. For example, why would a frail woman bother to drag a bloody corpse throughout her house and attempt to drain its blood into a bottle when she could merely bring the baby with her vampiric teeth to the body to feed directly? And why make a big deal of a scary breast milk-pumping machine only to fail to make any interesting use of it? One was left to wonder if pivotal details had not been left on the cutting room floor. There's also a shift by movie's end from thoughtful plot development to mere gory brutality without a natural or satisfying progression to the climax. Disappointingly, the end feels illogical and almost tacked on to leave room for a sequel.

Still, GRACE emerges as a thoughtful, engaging and visually effective first feature. Solet will no doubt only improve with each new film.

THE KILLING ROOM

Another reviewer likened this psychological horror to "SAW without the torture porn and CUBE without the Sci-fi." I can't think of any better way to describe this tense, minimalistic, yet effective film. Featuring Chloe Sevigny, Timothy Hutton and Nick Cannon in well-played roles, THE KILLING ROOM offers a few real jolts, no lack of despair, and lots of opportunities to ponder what will happen next, what would I do in such a situation, and what's the bigger picture here. As such, one's mind is engaged even in the slower and occasionally disappointing moments in the film. Well worth a rental when it comes out.