Shriekfest 2006: Day 4

Posted by Robert Fure (robert@filmschoolrejects.com) on October 2, 2006

Film Program 11, in your face, world.

This was the last film program of the day in the 8:00pm time slot. I had high hopes for this slot. I was hoping they saved the best for last. Unfortunately for me, this was not so.

Fear Tomorrow

In this super short, a patient displays bird-like symptoms, ie, he thinks he’s a bird, and is taken to a psychiatrist. Turns out, he’s contracted bird flu. And bird flu turns you into a bird. And for some reason people who think they’re birds have sex with their close on. I know. Don’t ask. It’s supposed to be funny, and a lot of the audience was laughing, but I wasn’t. I didn’t find it all that funny and was fairly bored, which is impressive considering it’s only 7 minutes long. The production values were fine and the guy who played the birdman to start did a great job. But this is one goose that should have been cooked.

Final Grade: D

Night of the Leben Tod
(www.ericforsberg.com/leben%20tod.htm)

Wow. What can I say. I did not enjoy this movie. There were a lot of people in the audience who did, although to be fair, I’m pretty sure they were part of the crew. A lot of the crew and actors showed up and they had a panel discussion afterwards.

The film’s official synopsis: The film follows the story of a pregnant woman, Anais, who is not allowed to leave the specialized hospital where her husband, Peter has a medical internship with his uncle, Dr. Gabriel Schreklich, a man with a serum that can resurrect the dead. But things go terribly wrong and the Ghouls take over the hospital. Now, the only way for Anais to save her unborn baby is to get one of the Ghouls to help her to escape.

Ok, real quick. One of the Ghouls does not help her escape. That’s sort of untrue. But basically, yeah, a crazy German doctor tries to find a formula to raise the dead after the death of his wife and daughter. The death scene is shot for laughs and I chuckled, although I’m not sure how funny a woman and her 8 year old daughter being fully run over, with all four wheels, of a sedan should be. Either way, the fun stopped there for me. What followed was a movie with a poorly executed and weak plot line, dozens of distracting continuity errors, and a low production value. I hate being mean in reviews, especially to Indie features on low budgets, but I’ve seen student films that were better done. This was, in my opinion, the worst film of the Festival. It should be avoided by 99% of the population. Some people out there love this kind of thing, I guess, but I don’t. The acting, overall, is sub-standard. The plot is weak, although the concept is good. The reason the concept is good is because it’s H.P. Lovecraft’s “Herbest West: Re-Animator,” a popular short story that was turned into the very excellent Re-Animator by Stuart Gordon.

Final Grade: F-

The Upside: Nothing. I can not think of a saving grace and for this I am sorry. The character of Anais was fairly attractive. That’s all I’ve got.

The Downside: The Entire Film. I don’t know why, but this film really angered me. It’s like when Digital first came out a lot of industry professionals and critics complained because now anyone could produce and make a film and that the majority of them would be horrible and waste our time. This is the film they tried to warn you about. I don’t like that I’m this hard on the film, but I can’t lie to you. This movie was what I would call “offensively bad.” Not that I was offended by any of the gore or the subject matter, it’s just that I was sort of insulted that this was put in front of me as a movie.

On the Side: This is director Eric Forsberg’s third horror film. His daughter has a role in the film, and is probably the best actor in it.

Note: I apologize to anyone who loves this film, or anyone in it, or associated with it, for my harsh review. But I am speaking honestly.

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