Bereavement

'BEREAVEMENT': Two and a Half Stars (Out of Five)

Director Steven Mena wrote, directed, produced and did the music for this horror prequel to the cult slasher film that got him his start 'MALEVOLENCE'. This film shows the origins of the main villain of 'MALEVOLENCE', as a child, when he himself was abducted by a psychopath and held captive in a farmhouse, where he was forced to not only witness but take part in the madman's brutal killings. The filmmaker says this film was intended to be more of a psychological character study horror film than the more routine slasher film that the original was. I don't see a difference; in my opinion this is a pretty standard B horror film. I haven't seen the original to compare it to but this one is mediocre at best.

The film begins with it's central character Martin Bristol (Spencer List) swinging alone on a swing in his front yard when he's kidnapped by a man named Graham Sutter (Brett Rickaby). It's explained that Martin has no physical feelings in his body, by his mother right before he's taken, so the killer continues to cut and abuse him, as he feels no pain, while also making him bare witness to the killings of other innocent victims he kidnaps. He's held captive in a farmhouse for quite some time while the movie changes focus to a family in the same town where a young woman named Allison (Alexandra Daddario) comes to live with her aunt and uncle after her parents die. Her uncle Jonathan (Michale Biehn, one of my old favorite actors) made a promise to his brother that he'd watch over her if anything happened to him. While dealing with her new situation Allison meets a young man in the area named William (Nolan Gerard Funk) who she develops feelings for. Of course her path eventually crosses with that of the killer and the young boy and things get complicated.

I've read that the original cut was 3 hours long and Mena wanted the film to be an epic horror film. Even at 103 minutes the movie could have used some better editing and I think a longer cut would be excruciatingly dull and unnecessary. The film as it is is barely worth it's time to watch. It does have a nice 80's feel to it though and fans of gore will definitely get what they're looking for. I also love seeing Michael Biehn in anything (especially the sci-fi/horror genres) so getting to see him in action again was a treat in itself (he is underused though). As a whole I'd say the film is pretty average, nothing more and nothing less, just you're average routine horror film; which is not of course how the filmmaker describes it but that's what it is.

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Kudos to writer/director Stevan Mena for making Bereavement, his prequel to the impressive Malevolence, such a downbeat, mean-spirited and bloody little psycho flick, and also for casting delicious Alexandra Daddario in the lead, an actress who deservedly finds a place in my 'Big Breasted Babe In A Small Vest' Horror Hall of Fame. No such praise, however for Mena's woeful script, which is both incredibly clichéd at times and deeply flawed, making the film frustratingly mediocre as a whole.

First and foremost, why did Mena have his serial killer drive around in a truck that reveals his identity on the side? Loitering outside schools, driving slowly down suburban streets, and prowling round parking lots for victims are the kind of thing best done in an unmarked vehicle (or so I am lead to believe—ahem!); nut-job Sutter has his name painted on the door of his distinctive rusty heap and would surely have been the prime suspect for any local disappearance. Amazingly, though, he continues to abduct and kill with no interference from the police. And then there's the little matter of Sutter's lair, a dilapidated meat packing factory which sits next to a main highway and yet has never aroused the suspicion of anyone passing by, despite screams clearly being audible from the road; incredibly, the place even has power and a fully functional furnace!!!

Considering the sheer stupidity of this basic set-up, it shouldn't come as much of a surprise to learn that the characters act as though they have sawdust for brains. Track star Alison (Daddario) has obviously never seen a horror film in her life, since she is happy to continue exploring the creepy meat factory even after finding pools of blood and a scrapbook full of newspaper cuttings about missing local women. Alison's boyfriend William suffers the ultimate price for displaying a similar lack of self preservation, as does a waitress who makes so much noise while attempting to escape from Sutter that it's not long before she's hanging from a meat-hook. Hell, it's almost as though people actually want to be killed by this guy.

Unfortunately, that's just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the idiocy on display in this film, with moments that will make you want to scream at the screen in frustration coming thick and fast, right up to the bleak and bloody finale that could have been avoided if only someone had just displayed a little common sense.

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.

"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.

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.