A group of college students are kidnapped by ruthless white slave trader Wayne (superbly played with calmly sadistic glee by John Still). Will any of them escape from their capture? Director/co-writer Jeremy Benson doesn't pull any punches with this admirably stark and hard-hitting indie horror item: the tone is appropriately grim, harsh, and depressing, the moments of raw brutality are truly startling, there's no silly obtrusive humor to detract from the bleak severity of the gut-wrenching horror, a strong and palpable sense of sheer nihilistic hopelessness pervades throughout (this movie even has the bad guys kill a little girl and her parents who stumble across their backwoods operation!), and the climax is gruesome, suspenseful, and surprisingly downbeat. The solid acting from a capable no-name cast rates as another substantial asset, with especially stand-out work by Christian Walker as the resilient Nick, Jeanette Comans as the feisty Erin, Stacy Still as the unhinged Kathy, and Patrick Cox as hulking brute Edgar. Both Brock Manchester's rather fuzzy, but crisp widescreen cinematography and Ryan Parker's moody, rattling score are up to par as well. A good'n'grisly little sleeper.
Review of Live Animals
