Shudder Saturday: It Stains The Sands Red (2016)

Directed by Colin Minihan, who also co-wrote the movie with Stuart Ortiz (you may know them better as "The Vicious Brothers"), It Stains The Sands Red has been getting generally favourable reviews and garnering some goodwill from horror movie fans. It's something a bit different, which is always welcome when it comes to a subgenre as overstuffed as the zombie movie, and it does a decent job with what must have been quite a low budget, I'd imagine. Unfortunately, I didn't like it as much as a lot of my genre-loving friends.

Brittany Allen plays Molly, a troubled woman who ends up walking through some desert on the outskirts of Las Vegas on her way to a small airfield. She's followed by a zombie (played by Juan Riedinger). Not a horde of zombies. Not a fast zombie. Just the one, shambling, animated corpse who won't give up. And that's basically the plot of this movie.

I can't praise Allen enough for her performance here. She carries the entire film on her shoulders, pretty much in every scene and working with a script that isn't always as strong as it could be. Nobody else has to work as hard as she does. There are some supporting cast members who havea few minutes of screentime here and there, but they're only there to make the film more bearable. For the most part, it's all down to Allen and Riedinger, and Riedinger has the much easier job (don't scowl as if you haven't already practiced your best "lead zombie" impression).

There are moments in which It Stains The Sand Red looks about to become something better, something deeper and more interesting. Moments that have Allen's character bearing a bit of her soul, worn down by the persistence of the male presence behind her until she even starts to think that he may be someone who can realise her pain (the analogy to standard relationships is obvious). But then it swerves back to be something more simplistic.

Miniham directs competently enough, although it's a shame that he doesn't show the same level of energy that was in his previous films, but his hands are tied by the script that he and Ortiz crafted. It never becomes as interesting or crazy or smart as it could be, sadly.

The film, and those who made it, should be commended for trying to do something that is a step away from the norm. It's just a shame that nobody had the confidence to keep moving further and further in that direction. This is a film made by people who initially want to wander off into new territory but then worry about losing their way, so they stay walking alongside the main road, occasionally going back on to it when they need to feel the smoother surface beneath their feet for a while as they continue towards their detsination.

5/10

Americans can buy the disc here.

Grave Encounters (2011)

Another entry in the increasingly popular mockumentary/found footage subgenre of films, Grave Encounters is an enjoyable and entertaining effort from “The Vicious Brothers” that ultimately starts to lose steam quickly when things become nothing more than one jump scare after another.

The premise is fantastic. ‘Grave Encounters’ is a mainstream, safe TV show in which the presenters turn up to investigate haunted places and try to pick up on any psychic vibes they may stumble across. Yep, it’s a ‘Most Haunted’ kind of show. Things start to take a turn for the genuinely spooky when host Lance Preston (Sean Rogerson) and the rest of the team lock themselves in Collingwood Psychiatric Hospital for the night. The important thing is to keep the cameras rolling to pick up the good stuff. Until it becomes clear that the important thing is to somehow survive the night and make it out alive.

This movie has three big plus points going for it. First of all, the concept is great and actually lends plausibility to the fact that cameras would still be rolling in this type of situation. Secondly, the jump scares ARE good. It’s just a shame that the movie becomes nothing more than a series of them. Thirdly, the acting from everyone concerned is just fine. Sean Rogerson is believable enough as the cynical, fed-up host who enjoys the thought of something actually being caught on tape for the show and then eventually just wants to get the hell out. Mackenzie Gray is amusing as “psychic” Houston Gray, especially in the early scenes showing just how he comes about his astonishing information. Juan Riedinger (as tech guy, Matt), Ashleigh Gryzko (Sasha the supernatural “expert”) and Merwin Mondesir (as cameraman T.C.) make up the quintet and do okay, though they’re somewhat hampered by the script.

 

This is a very enjoyable, and at times accomplished, debut from The Vicious Brothers but there’s no denying the numerous flaws that drag the movie down to something that just manages to stay above average. A poor ending doesn’t help and it’s a shame that something that had so much potential is instead a wasted opportunity. I certainly recommend it, regardless, to those wanting a few frights with the lights off.

6/10

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