Killer Kites

Of course I harbored zero expectations to this 2023 horror comedy titled "Killer Kites". And needless to say that I had never even heard about it, prior to sitting down to watch it.

The storyline was every bit as silly and goofy as I had assumed it would be, given the mere title of the movie. So writer Austin Frosch certainly delivered there. The story is so far out there that it was actually cringeworthingly fun to sit through it.

Of course I wasn't familiar with the cast ensemble in "Killer Kites", but there were actually some adequate enough talents on the cast list, especially when taking into consideration the type of movie that this was.

The characters and dialogue in the movie was every bit as cheesy and outrageous as the storyline itself. It was particularly hilarious that someone said that the kites are 'unnatural' and another guy stated that the kites are 'communists'. Amazing dialogue right there.

The special effects in the movie were exactly that; special. You have to witness how horrible the effects are to believe it. And that actually just added to the campiness that is "Killer Kites". The CGI animated kites looked so terrible on the screen that they were worthy adversaries to the abysmal animated birds in the "Birdemic" trilogy.

"Killer Kites" is a movie that you have to have a particular love of low budget, cheesy movies in order to sit down and watch. And thus, I assume that the movie will fall short of providing much of any entertainment to the majority of viewers out there.

Directors Paul Dale and Austin Frosch delivered a movie that was made with love for the cheesy, low budget cinema. I mean, just the entire concept of the movie is so far out there and ridiculous that it was actually a fun movie to watch.

My rating of "Killer Kites" lands on a four out of ten stars.

Coming into contact with a family heirloom, a woman's inheritance of a deadly kite from her family's dark past is confronted with the unbelievable news that the kite is possessed and capable of murder which is found to be responsible for a string of murders around her and must race to stop it.

There's quite a lot to like with this one. Among its more enjoyable features is the generally silly and over-the-top atmosphere generated by the equally goofy premise. The whole concept of the kite coming to life and carrying out a rampage of death and destruction on its own is an idea that's ludicrous taken on its own accord, but what happens here is given enough credit to become plausible on its own. The idea of the kite taking its legacy from the Cold War, and featuring a history even further than that which comes about through a series of revelations into the mystery about its history, goes a long way to keeping the film silly and goofy enough idea going. Given plenty of equally silly jokes and sketches that keep everything light and goofy which is a fun way to go with this one. That setup carries over into the type of action featured throughout here, which is a part of helping to buy into the premise. The use of the POV camera to show the kite sneaking up on the hapless victims who are blissfully unaware of the impending doom awaiting them is a generally fun time which is only enhanced by the generally silly attitude that permeates the sequences. With attack scenes requiring victims to pretend that an ambulatory kite maneuvering around is a deadly object for big attack scenes including the bread festival or the final encounter in the woods where they put their research to the ultimate test against the swarm of killer kites under its thrall, they're not only energetic and lively but also keep the same goofy energy that's present throughout here. All told, these provide the film with a lot to like even if this one does have some issues that hold it back. The main drawback comes from the aforementioned atmosphere present in the film where it's almost insultingly stupid simply to move the plot along. Characters here have to interact with others in scenarios that are so wholly ridiculous and implausible in the real world that it borders on insufferable where having to take the concept of a killer kite going around killing people seriously is only part of the problem. Given the lack of urgency or seriousness with which anyone takes this setup who are more concerned with meaningless character quirks or outside motivations that end up making everyone here moronically stupid is part of the point for this one which you know really early and easily demonstrates what kind of film this is. That factor, and it's criminally low budget, could be enough for some that might make for a nearly insufferable time here.

Rated Unrated/R: Graphic Language and Violence.

This film is stupid. Make no mistake how stupid it is. The previous film from this team, SEWER GATORS, is much more refined and a damn fun time. This film makes that film look like CITIZEN KANE, well... maybe not. Maybe CITIZEN KANE's porn parody.

Anyway, point is this film is outrageously dumb. All that being said, I smiled the whole way through. There is some really clever sight gags and lines that brought legitimate guffaws from me.

I'm not ashamed. I'm proud to have watched this movie! I'll walk into work tomorrow and declare, "I watched Killer Kites!".

Not a film for everyone, but... No, that's it.