The Zero Boys is something of a slow burn. As such how much you enjoy the movie will depend on whether or not. You prefer horror that takes its time to unwind. Most of the movie is about introducing the characters and setting up the situation that they find themselves in. It isn’t until the latter half of the movie that the characters become aware of the danger and the movie doesn’t truly hit its stride until the last 20-30 minutes.
The Zero Boys focuses less on jump scares and gore for its suspense than it does a general atmosphere of suspense. The people behind the Blu-ray have done an excellent job at remastering the movie for HD. The visuals are crystal clear and director Nico Mastorakis was right when he said that the movie had been given the appearance of something shot more recently. The visuals gel perfectly with the score (composed by a young Hans Zimmer) to reinforce the idea that danger is always around the corner.
Sadly, this tension isn’t always present when it comes to the villains of the movie. We get a vague sense of who is coming after the characters and we get a glimpse at their motivations in a manner similar to the torture porn movies that would follow decades later but we never get a sense of what it is that the villains get out of their actions. The actors manage to do their best with what they are given but getting a greater sense of who they were could have added a greater feeling of menace to the movie.
When watching The Zero Boys, it is easy to see the early days of elements that have since become commonplace in more recent movies. It does get some of these elements right and there is fun to be had in watching it. However, the elements introduced in movies like these have been improved upon by the movies that followed.
Like any good remastering, the film is something of a time capsule. It’s crisp in its presentation and the movie has aged well enough to not suffer as a result. There are a few fun extra features. The most noteworthy of which involves Nico Mastorakis sitting down to have an interview with himself. The interview is conducted with the right amount of tongue in cheek humour to stop it being silly. It also helps that the director actually asks himself serious questions about the movie and how it was made, rather than merely stroking his ego. The Zero Boys is worth getting for anyone looking for something fun to watch for an evening in.
THE ZERO BOYS / CERT: 18 / DIRECTOR & SCREENPLAY: NICO MASTORAKIS / STARRING: DANIEL HIRSCH, KELLI MARONEY, NICOLE RIO, TOM SHELL, JARED MOSES, CRYSTAL CARSON / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW
