Eight Eyes

Vinegar Syndrome's maiden production, Eight Eyes, is a love letter to horror -- specifically the grindhouse and exploitation films of the 1970s. Although the film is set in modern times, the 16mm shooting gives it a grainy, retro quality which any lover of old school films will undoubtedly appreciate. The occasional glimpses of modern tech provide a jarring (though not in a bad way) reminder that the action is not actually set in the '70s. The retro vibe is not overdone, however, and the film, although paying tribute to many other films, has a voice entirely its own.

For some, the first act will be the more effective. It is relatively slow-paced, building tension with a familiar scenario: an American couple tour the Balkans (Serbia) and meet an enigmatic local. We do not know what lurks behind Saint Peter's apparent hospitality, but we know it is not anything good. Had I stopped watching at this point, I would likely have rated this film only a 6, ot 7 at most. I can appreciate an effective slow-burn, but the second act is (for me, anyway) truly where Eight Eyes' strength lies.

Without giving too much away, it pays clear homage to Texas Chainsaw Massacre, while incorporating a trace of cosmic horror. This is delivered in excellent, jittery technocolour, giving the film a twist that is not only original, but a visual treat. It also boasts some wonderful set pieces. Some things are, however, left to the viewer's imagination, so for those looking for an film that prioritises tight storytelling, this one may lean too heavily towards style over substance. However, for horror fans who want to see a new twist on what we love about the grindhouse era, Vinegar Syndrome has risen to the challenge admierably.

Emily Sweet delivers a strong, and very believable, performance as "Cass" in the first half of "Eight Eyes." Unfortunately, this character study is lost (or at least put to the side) in the second half of the film.

Sweet is entirely credible as the increasingly exasperated young wife of "Gav" (Bradford Thomas) who befriends the rather odd "Saint Peter" (Bruno Veljanovski) during their journey through Serbia. The smiling (or is it smirking?) Saint Peter functions as their erst-while tour guide from early in the film, though Cass almost immediately suspects he is not what he represents. She certainly resents Saint Peter's inappropriate comments and hair-trigger tendencies, despite Gav's decision to continually placate their new "friend" in the name of getting along.

Of course, it is Cass' suspicions that eventually prove correct, but by that point the film has left behind the careful character studies and simply copies (as other viewers have noted) such films as "Hostel" and the "Texas Chain Saw Massacre." The second half does not so much suffer from this decision as waste an opportunity to be a different type of entry.

Austin Jennings creates a darkly romantic portrait of Serbian family dysfunction. It explores a couple's (Cass and Gav) travels while filming footage with vintage equipment.

The story follows them until meeting a stranger, Saint Peter. Then like with many cinematic tropes of the American tourists in a foreign country, things go array.

It's slow moving but if you are a film technie, this film is for you. The director explores Italian filmmaking, 70s Giallo and horror genres by using practical effects with a selection of cameras. Although Jennings really tried to produce something new, rather than mimicking.

The acting by Emily Sweet as Cass, the woman in peril, holds the storytelling with the performance of Bruno Veljanovski as Saint Peter. Location shots are well photographed and as well as interior shots of trains, apartments, etc.

You wonder why the makers of films like "Eight Eyes" pull out all the stops in making a film that looks like a grindhouse flick from the '70s when the movie itself could only have been made in modern times.

It's shot on old cameras, has retro-style introductory titles, and a low-key synthesiser score like something sampled on a Moog, but the relationships and characters are straight out of any modern movie.

It seems to clash.

It doesn't help that most of the movie feels like a rip-off of "Hostel", a movie from the new millennium, and only seems to ape "Texas Chainsaw Massacre" toward the end of it.

I didn't really get it. Why evoke so much of Yugoslav culture and history, just to finish off in a splatter fest that could have happened anywhere?

Nor did I really understand what the ending was getting at. There's a long hallucinatory sequence that was maybe just in the movie to make it seem more dingy and grindhouse?

Also I didn't really understand how our unlikeable protagonist went from the streets of Macedonia to the hide-out of the bad guys, nor what the bad guys actually wanted with them. What was with the naked fat guy in the mask?

Maybe that was just a nod to Texas Chainsaw, ie. This movie's version of Leatherface.

Whatever. By that time I was mostly just waiting for the movie to end.

Eight Eyes takes you on a wonderful trip of tension building and release cycles. 16mm film, in camera effects, and the eastern European setting mesh well to create a cohesive art direction for this memorable film.

I was pleasantly surprised by the restrained use of gore. What was there was effective, but never so much or so often as to become desensitizing or tiresome.

The acting was fantastic (especially female lead and the main antagonist) with a solid script. It also includes an interesting story/thematic twist on the genre. So, while the film nailed the genre(s) it was going for, it was also unique and memorable. Definitely worth a watch for anyone into indie or throwback/analog horror.