Review Category: VOD

Eagle-eyed viewers may have noticed a From Dusk till Dawn-shaped hole on the site last week, where a (possibly lizard-surnamed, but probably not) cheeky scally broke into my home, stole my laptop and took my review of episode three (Mistress) with it. Not cool. So before we get started with Let’s Get Ramblin’, a recap:

Well, Seth went for a tasty burger (a Big Kahuna burger, most notably favoured by Samuel L. Jackson in Pulp Fiction) and we learned more of Richie’s apparently psychic abilities as he bonded with their hostage. A hostage who wound up dead by the end of the episode. Meanwhile, lawman Gonzalez met with Jake Busey to discuss vampires and Mexican cults, while Jacob Fuller got himself well and truly drunk. It was also revealed that Seth’s contact, Carlos, also happened to be a bloodsucker. All in all then, you didn’t miss much. Thank the Lord for TV decompression.

That decompression is still in full effect as the Fullers arrive at the motel for a well-earned rest, not escaping Seth’s notice as they do. Four episodes in, and the Geckos interact with the Fullers for the first time. All the added time and space of the TV series gives us more insight into the Fullers’ family history than the movie allowed, with daughter Kate suspecting that her dear old dad is a little less guilty of her mother’s death than he’s letting on. Robert Patrick is no Harvey Keitel, but he’s a good enough fit for the character, and an enjoyable screen presence. Let us not forget that he has prior From Dusk till Dawn history too, starring, as he did, as the lead in its sequel.

Where episode one gave us the film’s prologue, episode two took us from there to the motel, and the third (Big Kahuna aside) was content to stay put, Let’s Get Ramblin’ rather laboriously details the kidnapping of Jacob Fuller and his two kids. No surprises so far, with the plot staying incredibly faithful to Tarantino’s original story. Everyone gets more background and there’s method to Richie’s madness, but none of it seems particularly necessary. If anything, it serves only to undermine the characters. Seth is suffering the most at present, lacking the wit, charm and steely scariness of the George Clooney iteration. D.J. Cotrona might do a fine impression of Clooney’s easy drawl, but he lacks almost all of his charisma. Of the two, Zane Holtz is worthiest of your time, not hampered by the need to go around doing a Quentin Tarantino impression all of the time. Because that would just be horrible.

It’s not all old news though, with ranger Gonzalez (Jesse Garcia, still turning in the series’ worst performance) still hot on the brothers’ tail. After a quick flashback and an even quicker nightmare sequence, Gonzalez busts Seth’s ex-wife to learn where the boys are headed. He gets damn close, too. Unfortunately, the tension of the chase is kind of ruined by the fact that anyone who has seen the original Dusk till Dawn will know exactly where everyone is headed next. Poor Gonzalez, literally the only man who doesn’t know how this story is going to play out. Still, it does get us a Mexican standoff, a motel shootout, rooftop chase sequence and a spot of fisticuffs between Seth and Gonzalez. As far as action goes, it’s not Robert Rodriguez, but it’s a step in the right direction.

Four episodes in, and From Dusk till Dawn finally gets on the road. Let’s Get Ramblin’, goes the episode title, but I don’t know if I’d recommend that. From Dusk Till Dawn has rambled enough for now. Let’s get a move on, maybe.

Following its exciting, intriguing pilot episode and extended prologue, From Dusk till Dawn hits the road. On the run from pissed off lawman Freddie Gonzalez, the bickering Gecko brothers make for the Mexican border, bank teller hostage in tow. Added to the mix is the mixed-up Fuller family, headed in the same direction and soon to collide painfully with Seth and Richie.

As with its pilot, there’s equal parts familiar and new to this second episode of From Dusk till Dawn. The Fuller family, while played by different actors from the 1996 original, are instantly recognisable. There’s Robert Patrick in the Harvey Keitel role as dad Jacob, Madison Davenport as hot daughter Kate, and Brandon Soo Hoo as the geeky son. On an impromptu RV roadtrip following their mother’s death, the Fullers pull over at a quiet, dusty motel for the night. The Geckos, meanwhile, are headed in much the same direction…

As with the opening episode’s liquor store hold-up, there’s a sense of decompression to events. Flashbacks to the Geckos’ bank heist give us more room to get to know Seth and Richie, although this isn’t always for the better. Seth, for instance, loses a great deal of the edginess which made him such a compelling character in the movie as he converses casually with a hostage while Richie busies himself cracking a safe. Richie, meanwhile, is made a less interesting psychopath as he begins to see visions and whispers of what is to come, hinting at the vampirism which lies waiting for them at the Titty Twister bar. Likewise, those glimpses we get of the series’ vampires (including one full-on vamp attack) can’t help but miss the point of what made the original Dusk till Dawn so great – its abrupt change of genre.

Not enough time is spent with the Fullers to tell how they compare to the original lot. Unfavourably, would be the less fair prediction, given the step down in quality of actor. Patrick, so good in Terminator 2, looks surprisingly schlubby here, although he does have the chops to potentially make the role his own. Not so Madison Davenport, a more conventional personality than the wonderful Juliette Lewis, lacking the actress’s unique charm. Soo Hoo isn’t given much of anything to do, but he deals with what material he is given just fine. Of the new stuff, there’s the growing obsession of Gonzalez, Kate’s Christian boyfriend and a vampire hitch-hiker. There’s a bank teller too, but she spends the whole episode bound and gagged in the trunk of the brothers’ car.

Blood Runs Thick is a decent, if unambitious second episode of this fledgling adaptation. So far, it seems content with merely replaying the film’s story at a much slower pace, trying to make us like Seth and Richie more. That’s fine, but I can’t help but feel disappointed at the lack of dynamism here. I may have praised the pilot for not straying too far from the course, but I do hope that the series tries to do a little more of its own thing soon. From Dusk till Dawn is still cool, but, as with unhinged brother Richie’s mind, the cracks are beginning to show.

Since the success of American Horror Story, television horror has been going from strength to strength. With even Norman Bates getting in on the act in Bates Motel, it’s a good time to be a horror fan. Likewise, the rise of Netflix and LoveFilm has revolutionised TV viewing – particularly the likes of Orange Is the New Black, Breaking Bad and Arrested Development’s much celebrated resurrection. The two meet in From Dusk Till Dawn, a TV reboot of the phenomenally fun 1996 vampire movie.

D.J. Cotrona and Zane Holtz are Seth and Richie Gecko – vicious, hardened and unpredictable criminals, neither of whom are played by George Clooney or Quentin Tarantino. This pilot (also directed by Robert Rodriguez) expands the mythology of the film as the Gecko brothers rob a liquor store, take some hostages and wind up on the run from the law. So far, it’s like the start of the film, except drawn out for almost forty-five minutes.

That sounds awful, but it actually works rather well. Rodriguez’s fingerprints are all over this, from the washed out visuals to the script (several lines of Tarantino’s screenplay remain) and the macho men who populate the series. The constraints of TV force Rodriguez to tone down some of his more characteristic flair, but that’s not always to the episode’s detriment – indeed, a lot of his recent output has been borderline unwatchable and almost self-parody in its desperation for Grindhouse authenticity. It’s too early to tell how the supernatural elements will come into play (aside from a brief prologue, there are no vampires) but this serves as a great (re)introduction to the Gecko brothers and the series’s new character, lawman Freddie Gonzalez (Jesse Garcia).

From the outset, we can safely say that Cotrona is no George Clooney (he sounds completely awkward attempting to growl the infamous “everybody be cool” line), his softly spoken honourable criminal act just coming across as a bad impression for now. Hopefully the following episodes will give him room to make the role his own, stepping out of Gorgeous George’s (hunky) shadow. Holtz, however, impresses as Richie. He doesn’t attempt a Tarantino impression, because nobody wants to see that again. Instead, his Richie is quietly menacing and believably disturbed, where Tarantino just came across as… well, Quentin Tarantino.

On the basis of this pilot, From Dusk Till Dawn is a surprising success. Stylish, slick and action-packed, it doesn’t deviate too much from the source material (a clever move, perhaps, to keep fans on board) but leaves plenty of room for innovation in future. There are nine episodes of this first series to go (airing every week, just after its US premiere). Everybody be cool, From Dusk Till Dawn is cool.

VOD REVIEW: DON’T LET HIM IN/ CERT: 18 / DIRECTOR: KELLY SMITH / SCREENPLAY: CHRIS ANDREWS, KELLY SMITH / STARRING: SOPHIE LINFIELD, SAM HAZELDINE, GORDON ALEXANDER, RHYS MEREDITH, GEMMA HARVEY / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW VIA THEHORRORSHOW.TV

What if you invited a serial killer on holiday? That is the intriguing question asked by Don’t Let Him In, a low budget British horror film from first time director Kelly Smith.

Paige (Linfield) and Calvin (Meredith) are setting off for a weekend away, with his sister Mandy (Harvey) in tow. Unexpectedly, Mandy asks if her latest conquest Tristan (Alexander), an obnoxious city trader, can tag along. Tristan isn’t too keen on the idea but a text message telling him to lay low changes his mind.

A warning from the local bobby (Jason Carter) to be aware that a serial killer, dubbed the Tree Surgeon due to his penchant for cutting up his victims and tying them to trees, has been active in the area puts the group on edge, but they decide to stay and make the most of their break. When Tristan fails to return from picking up some supplies, Calvin and Mandy head out to look for him, and a badly injured hitch hiker, Shawn (Hazeldine) turns up at the cottage. Tristan is not happy about helping him, but it soon becomes apparent that he is hiding more than just a bad attitude and appalling manners.

Despite its brisk 75min running time, Don’t Let Him In manages to pack a lot in. There’s plenty of gore, and some well-handled scares. There’s a slight problem with the mystery of who the killer is, but that is really down to the aforementioned tag line, which gives the viewer the tip off, but even then writer/director Smith manages to pull a few rugs. It is clear he is a talent to watch with a passion for this style of film, and it will be interesting to see what he can come up with when he is given a bigger budget. His experience in editing comes to the fore, and the use of celluloid rather than shooting straight to digital adds to the grindhouse feel, plus the obvious care and attention paid to the sound design pays off and makes the film look like a bigger budget affair.

However, there are some points where it resorts to cliché; mobile phone reception is conveniently lost just when it would be needed, and the final girl running for her life in her undies, which is also seen in the opening sequence before we get to a ‘two days earlier’ scenario. The final cast listing in the ‘you have been watching’ style of the UK sitcom takes a little away from the devastating climax, but on the whole it is an assured, and entertaining début for Smith.