Bereavement - In den Händen des Bösen

It's been a few days now since I watched "Bereavement", and the more I contemplate about it, the more I have to reckon that it was a unique viewing experience for me! It's a really good horror movie, and simultaneously it's a very bad horror movie. Usually you spot a couple of strong aspects in an overall bad film, or you find a few things disappointing in an overall good film, but "Bereavement" is quite different. The good aspects are truly great, whereas the bad aspects are incredibly bad and, in the end, I can't decide what to think of it! Therefore, and for the first time in IMDb history, I'll be writing a schizophrenic/Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde review!

Dr. Jekyll says: "Bereavement" is a downright fantastic experience that you simply must watch in case you're a seeker of genuine and unhinged horror! For the first time in decades, we are faced with an atmosphere that is authentically grim and petrifying, and a screenplay that is vile, shocking and completely devoid of taboos or political correctness. Stevan Mena is the guy who finally dared to write a film about subjects that really scare people! Sick individuals prowling around in their eerie old cars and abducting defenseless young children, endlessly exposing fragile & undeveloped young minds to extreme violence, honest and good-hearted people getting slaughtered in front of their loved ones without reason, etc. "Bereavement" is one of the bleakest and nihilistically primitive stories ever and even the most experienced horror fanatics with strong stomachs and steel nerves are likely to be astounded by the brutality of this film. The remote locations (like the ramshackle meat & poultry abattoir) and set-pieces (like Sutter's van) are shivering and the total absence of comic relief makes the tense ambiance even more unbearable. The killings are relentlessly mean-spirited and there is a lot of graphic and uncompromising gore on display. It's always excellent to see Michael Biehn in a thriller/horror film, and his performance is reliably forceful as usual. Young heroine Alexandra Daddario is a stunning beauty with one of the brightest pairs of blue eyes I have ever seen, but with a breast size like hers, I would advise her to wear a sport bra when jogging. You're going to get back problems, girl!

Mr. Hyde says: how far does writer/director Stevan Mena expect us to push our suspension of disbelief? The screenplay of "Bereavement" is utterly ridicule and implausible. I reckon there aren't any policemen in Pennsylvania, because the least inconspicuous child abductor/serial killer in history can carelessly remain at large for a period of at least five years! This guy slowly drives near schools and playgrounds with an eye-catching pervert van that even has his actual name written in bright white letters on the side. Stranger danger, anyone? Five years later, he's still driving the same damn piece of wreckage, even though you can clearly read in newspaper clipping that an old black van got spotted at the house where the quiet kid was kidnapped. His liar, a narrowly demolished family company abattoir, also isn't exactly a secure hideout. It's located right next to the main road, and practically all the widows are broken, so at some point, please tell me that someone must heard the screams of tortured girls or smelled the stench of rotting corpses? Apparently, nobody in this godforsaken hole bothers to call the authorities or search for missing persons, like the waitress, and even cool dudes like Michael Biehn make dumb decisions. The teenage girl (and also her boyfriend) is the dumbest of the bunch, since she solely ventures into the cellars and corridors of a nasty slaughterhouse that is full of blood puddles, body parts and torture devices. Without once looking over her shoulder! Oh well, what do you expect from a chick with a D-cup size who doesn't wear a sports bra when she goes jogging? I could raise several more examples to point out the characters' stupidity, but the message is clear: the script of "Bereavement" is an insult to the intellect of every self-respecting horror fan!

Eventually, Dr. Jekyll narrowly wins the mental battle (hence the 6/10 rating) because I still principally respect the fact that Stevan Mena has the courage to bring a cruel and unrelenting fright-story.

Bereavement is a slasher movie with some strong points - good acting (Michael Biehn, Alexandra Daddario and the rest of the cast) and a good cinematography and production value. The weakest point: the behavior of the victims is so dumb like they never heard any news of serial killers and maniacs or never watched some horror movies. So watching them killed I always thought - well , that's survival of the fittest, baby ;)

In a teenie-slasher with some elements of comedy such "behavior" of course is part of the deal, in a "serious" slasher like Bereavement it is not. On top, there are some implausibility and issues with the story: many girls disappear but nobody checks on the weird guy living in a old slaughterhouse, is just one of them. Also the "twist" (no, I won't spoil) I saw miles ahead coming and is just a cliche that wants to shock but can't, at least not the "serious" horror audience.

Well, with a more refine and plausible plot this movie could be easy a really good slasher. So it is a solid one, that is in the end not in every aspect convincing.

Where to start.... Well I read the reviews and as always went in with an open mind since I frequently like films with bad reviews (I obviously ignored the amazing reviews from cast and crew)

I was expecting a B-Movie slasher I guess. What I got was a film trying to punch far too much above it's weight. It wanted to be taken seriously but when the leading lady has obviously been picked for her ample bosoms and permanently larger than life nipples over her acting it just ain't gonna happen!

Then there's the blood.... Lots of it obviously but could they really not get the colour right? I think the effects dept must have popped to Asda for some cheap ketchup. Very poor effort.

I think F- Movie sums it up really. AVOID.

"Brought home a boy from the valley. He's young enough to learn the business my way."

This recent entry in the "small town psychopathic serial killer" genre isn't exactly a game-changer and it doesn't try to be that scary, but it is a tense, nasty affair that will probably appeal to some horror fans. 

We've got out deranged killer that preys on young women, a young boy he kidnaps to "assist" him, and a new arrival from out of town (Alexandra Dadarrio) that enjoys taking long runs alone that just happen to pass by a sinister looking and isolated rundown meat-packing plant. If you're guessing that's a recipe for blood, brutality and death, then you're right.

Bereavement is fine for what it is, but I doubt I'll be compelled to watch it more than once. There's nothing really exceptional about it, though some of the outdoor cinematography is beautiful, there's a concentrated effort to give depth and a back-story to most of the main characters, and Alexandra is undoubtedly nice eye candy (if there was an Academy Award for filling out a halter top, she'd have it in the bag). The bottom line, though, is that this is such a thoroughly bleak movie that it's almost too realistically grim and hopeless to find entertainment in. That's not necessarily a "flaw", but it's definitely something some viewers will respond less favorably to than others. 

Oh, and I don't think I've heard this much screaming in a film in quite a while. Have your ears prepared to be assaulted.

When you go to a horror movie, you expect one basic thing: to be scared. This movie does not deliver.

Not only does it not deliver in the "scare me" department, but the scenes are so utterly ridiculous, the acting so insanely over the top, and the direction so pitifully bad that I had to walk out at the 3/4 mark of the film. It's just really bad on all levels. It's so bad that it's not even worth watching just to see how bad it is.

I can forgive a lot when I go to movies these day (they do seem to be going down hill), but this one is not worth watching for any amount of money. And if it were free, I'd rather watch Madea's Big Happy Family.