The Welder (2021) Poster

(2021)

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3/10
Strangeness
BandSAboutMovies24 February 2023
Warning: Spoilers
Roe (Roe Dunkley) and Eliza (Camila Rodríguez) are dealing with her PTSD from her military service, which is causing her sleepwalk and be traumatized by basic tasks. She thinks that a weekend away will fix it all. He thinks it's going to take something else and wonders why she doesn't just lean on him more.

So when they find the place of tranquil rest run by Dr. Godwin (Vincent De Paul), they find somewhere that look nothing like the photos and has no phone service. And the good - well, not so good - doctor has plans of ridding the world of racism through his strange experiments.

Directed by David Liz, who co-wrote this with Manuel Delgadillo, The Welder lives up to one of its lines: we're all red inside. It's a creepy journey that has enough differences from other films to earn your eyes. Just make sure Dr. Godwin doesn't take anything else.
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4/10
A generally disappointing effort without much going for it
kannibalcorpsegrinder19 March 2023
Trying to help curse her PTSD, a couple decides to embark on a restful vacation at a rest home in the middle of nowhere as a means of helping her get through it, but when they realize that there's a devious nature to his hosting duties and must try to get away before he puts his plans into action.

This was a decent enough if somewhat flawed genre effort. One of the best features here is the rather solid ambiance around the ranch that tends to linger throughout as this one offers the kind of atmosphere that's quite effective. Most of what happens here is built around concepts where it's obvious something is wrong but no one mentions it with the sketchy behavior of the owner tending to the local animals, the secretive behavior whenever they try to pry into what happened, and the series of lackluster storylines about being so far away from civilization that they don't notice anyone around or can't get any contact with the outside world. Despite all these obvious clues that something's not right and they're staying there, it also enhances the atmosphere of the situation rather nicely so that the later half when his devious plans are brought out in some brief yet still brutal and graphic scenes that give this some rather fun parts to hold it up. There are some really big issues at the heart of this one that really brings it down. The main detriment found here is the wrong-headed central theme of the film where its intentions and purpose are way off-base here as the central point is indeed quite noble in attempting to find a root cause of racism and trying to remove it surgically. That is completely undone, though, by the whole thing being attempted on couples that already employ that as the main targets are clearly mixed-race couples who have already ended that stigma to begin with so what's going on comes off as more of a condemnation of it than actually trying to remove it. This mixed-up messaging gives the film an incredibly off-putting and jumbled tone that's at odds with what his speeches and notes try to provide context for so it's all awkward when it's finally revealed. The other issue with this one, which is a bit heavily foreshadowed earlier about the setup, is that this one takes so long to get to its point that it's quite easy to lose interest in what's going on. While the final half here is far more energetic than what came before it, it's all too late to save this one as the first half is somewhat dull and underwhelming with the majority of these scenes showing their oblivious nature for everything happening that not only makes this dull with nothing much happening but also makes them slightly less likable for going through and staying there despite all the hints that something's off. These issues really take a toll on this one that is hard to come back from, and especially with the other factor here being quite detrimental as well, really end up making this one somewhat disappointing.

Rated Unrated/R/ Graphic Violence, Graphic Language, and strong themes of racism.
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3/10
Social justice murderer
Alright guys, so this one over all... was rough. However, keeping in mind that this was INDI indi... it should be judged as such and was not unsuccessful on all fronts.

Plot wise, we were lacking here people. It had me engaged very loosely for about the first half but started to fall off after that. Felt like someone just went "yo, but like, listen... what if there was a dude who did this and that cause of this relevant issue and like... yeah, gnarly" when in actuality it was a kinda lame... or at least the execution of the reveal/main concept really let it down. I was just barley holding on until this point and it was a bit of a let down, so after that it was just about finishing the movie out.

I passed this trailer a few times and something brought me back to it even though I did not have high hopes. I think one of the big positives is the atmosphere created here. It sets quite the spooky tone and has a great location to do so. Sometimes that was a bit negated by jumpy cuts, silly zooms and bad angles that brought you out of the fantasy at times. The only shots that really stood out were some lovely drone shots.

Another thing that drastically took you out of the fantasy was the acting. Home girl that played the main character did a pretty decent job. Could have used a bit wider range of emotion but by far the best. I saw a lot of potential in the boyfriend having some really natural and relatable moments, however a lot of his delivery was stilted and uncomfortable to watch. Quite honestly, everyone else...plainly... was bad and we don't need to harp on that.

This was riding on a 4 for me for about 2/3s but unfortunately the third act dropped it down to a three. As I said, still not completely unsuccessful. If you love very indi horror you might enjoy, but all in all probably wouldn't recommend to most.
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10/10
From beginning to end, keeps you on the edge
elclopez-7522227 October 2021
I was fortunate to watch the premiere of The Welder at the Popcorn Frights Film Festival. Directing, screenplay, Cinematography, Cast, location, suspense, humor, love, passion, betrayal, blood and more .. all "welded" into one brilliant film.

I love the original screenplay and the fact you still get nods and references to horror cult classics it's a plus !
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10/10
A rare movie that succeeds on every level.
wilfredguerrero26 February 2023
The actors and motivated team members demonstrated superior technical ability in this type of horror film. The producers work of exceptional quality. The movie takes the time ton fully demonstrate the scope of the project and displays a keen attention to detail. Characters, scene, costumes are firing on all cylinders to make the horror film a worth repeated viewing. Is a horror film that depicts what happens when a man is introduced to the pain of loosing a love one. The main characters find themselves getting into a world of trouble that they never expected. A legendary performance in this film as a female lead.
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10/10
Enjoyable creepy indie film!
thespisrosetheater17 November 2021
Without giving away any spoilers, the director/writer pays tribute to classic horror films and does a great job! Vincent De Paul does a great job playing a creepy guy with a hidden agenda. If you're looking for a on your edge of seat horror film, give this film a look and you won't be disappointed.
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10/10
A horror film with substance
map-9109128 October 2021
I've been a fan of genres films since I was a kid; I grew up watching horror and thrillers like Scream, Candyman, Silence of the lambs, Dusk till dawn, and so many others. I'm a fan of slashers and gore, but also really enjoy when a film lets me in on the characters backstory. I think this is one of the reason The Welder resonated with me. It wasn't scary in the traditional sense, I wouldn't compare this film to the insidious franchise or Hereditary for example; I feel like those films fall squarely in the horror genre category, The Welder is different. It combines elements of Body horror, thriller, drama, and heck even a pinch of that delicious camp we all loved from the 90s. With those ingredients combined, The Welder really delivers in more ways then one. Firstly, since there is such an intimate cast, Director David Liz and co-writer Manny Delgadillo were able to really develop each character like an onion, with many, many layers. This allowed me to really understand who each character was and why they were doing what they were doing; which in turn helped me understand the film on a deeper level. Another thing I liked about the film was the acting. It was a cast of unknowns, but they were so good. Camila Rodriguez (Eliza) and Roe Dunkley (Roe) really sell their relationship and I really felt for Roe when.... Actually, no spoilers here, watch the film. Camila is a beautiful, young, and Latina actress who has so much talent she is most certainly not going to remain unnoticed for long. Roe is so good as well, he reminds me of a mix between young Will Smith and John David Washington. Vincent De Paul (Dr. Godwin) plays an amazing villain, who turns out to be more of an anti-hero. Mr. De Paul was excellent, his deep and honest portrayal of Dr. Godwin was moving and expertly executed; you can tell he is a seasoned performer, such a phenomenal actor. Cristian Howard (Don) plays the perfect Igor (Frankenstein reference), with his expertly executed depiction matched with his piercing green eyes he really created a magical mood which I haven't seen in a horror film for a long time. The thing I liked most about the movie is it's message of unity. Although there are scares, blood, sparks, and cut off limbs the overall message is one of togetherness. Like their tagline reads: We're all Red inside. In a way this movie is certainly trying to teach it's viewers a lesson, almost like a warning to society: Sometimes when you try to fix things, you inadvertently makes things worse.
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