From the off, it is somewhat difficult to tell whether Wrong Place, Wrong Time is pastiche/homage or straight-up serious fare. Is it aiming for that cult status so often chased by indie filmmakers, whom so often forget that it is an audience that makes a cult film rather than the auteur themselves, or the second prize of ‘so bad its good’?
A group of mercenaries (comprising of the psychotic one, the ‘badass’ hooded one, the gun-loving one, the tech one, the ‘caring’ one etc.) take on the big money job that leaves them at the mercy of an evil creature ‘out for blood’. Plot wise, nothing new to the genre, but one that still merits its oft-trotted out status for the amount of conclusions available to its formula. Formula being the operative word here. The film takes its tried and tested tale and sticks rigidly to it and the twist… well, we’re firmly in From Dusk Till Dawn territory here.
That said, there is nothing wrong with the kind of movie that asks nothing of its audience once in a while. Disregard the clunky script and stay for the splatter. Disregard the lighting and enjoy the costumes, set, and monster effects. While the editing can be a little jarring, characters appear and disappear seemingly on a whim in some scenes, WPWT is an entertaining romp.
Pastiche or serious action/horror? That will be for you to answer, as it is unclear what the filmmaker’s intentions were on that count – there is little by way of humour and the seriousness is just slightly too underplayed to warrant a knowing wink from the cast. However, sit back and enjoy an unashamedly low-budget fun-filled flick that asks only an hour and a half of your time and very few brain cells to countenance.
Wrong Place, Wrong Time is available on digital platforms in the US. UK TBC
