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Continuing on with our advanced coverage of this year’s South by Southwest (SXSW) Film Festival, I would like to take a moment to spread some blood on your Friday afternoon. I will do this by presenting the trailer for writer/director Steven Kastrissios’ The Horseman, which will be premiering as part of the Fantastic Fest @ SXSW midnight series.

As you will see in the trailer below, the story follows a man named Christian (Peter Marshall) as he violently investigates the mysterious and brutal murder of his daughter. As he travels through rural Australia to investigate, he picks up Alice (Caroline Marohasy), an awkward young runaway and an unlikely bond develops. But as the crime is pieced together, an ugly truth is revealed and Christian spirals down a dangerous path.

This is the obvious connection, but The Horseman appears to be a bloodier version of Taken, starring Liam Neeson. Only this time it is about a dad who doesn’t exactly get his daughter back, making his revenge even more brutal. “I wanted to put my stamp on the revenge genre by grounding it in reality and exploring the morality, all without sacrificing the fun stuff”, says Kastrissios. What he doesn’t exactly say is that he also wanted to do it with lots of blood — which we all know to be true.

Selected as one of six films in the Fantastic Fest @ SXSW line-up, the first of two screenings will be held at the Alamo South Lamar theatre at midnight March 14th. This is the debut feature of 26 year-old writer/director Steven Kastrissios who will be in attendance. Check out the trailer below and stay tuned to our SXSW ’09 Homepage for more coverage.