Faces Of Schlock (2010) & Defiled (2010/Independent Entertainment DVDs)
Picture: C- Sound:
D Extras:
D Films: C-
Here we have two films from Independent
Entertainment. The first we will be taking a look at is Faces of
Schlock - a movie that promotes itself as the ultimate homage to 80’s
horror. Unfortunately, it seems that this line was crafted as an
afterthought, or that the filmmakers have little idea of what a horror film of
that era was like. The film is an anthology, containing four stories and
a wraparound. The first two stories, Blood Witch and Mike Wuz
Here, are the worst of the bunch. There is little for these segments
to offer the viewer, and they fizzle out rather quickly.
Fortunately, things do pick up somewhat, as the next two stories have more
laughs and more gore. One Foot in the Grave is the story of a girl
seeking to get back her amputated foot, which has now come to life and is on a
killing spree. Although a very cheap production, the idea of a killer
foot on the loose is amusing. The filmmakers have done a good job of
making the idea plausible enough that we might see this often neglected
appendage wreaking havoc in future horror films.
The final tale of the film, Slay Ride, is also decent. A teen
delinquent gets herself in trouble for decapitating a Santa statue at
school. She then is forced to have a study partner join her on Christmas
Eve so that she might not end up being held back another year. Not a well
crafted film, per se, but a visit from Santa and couple of simple plot twists
are enough but it does evoke enough enjoyment to warrant a viewing.
The second DVD up for review is of the film Defiled. A woman in a
relationship cannot bring herself to make love with her boyfriend has an
addiction to real life sex with men she finds on the internet. One of her
encounters goes horribly wrong when the man she invites over doesn’t intend to
leave and begins to torment her and kill those she loves. This film is
intended to be more realistic than the former title, but it misses the mark of
being a dark and disturbing and is merely offensive to the viewer.
Both Faces of Schlock and Defiled are presented in 1.78:1
anamorphic widescreen. Image quality for them is consistent with most low
budget indie horror, in that it is rather poor.
The films also each feature Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo sound mixes.
While the sound quality is uneven on Faces of Schlock, being from
different sources for each story, they are all fairly bad recordings. The
sound on Defiled is of poor quality all-around.
Special features on these sets include behind the scenes featurettes on the Faces
of Schlock disc and audio commentary on Defiled. None of the
extras have been made with much finesse, and aside from these meager
inclusions, there isn't much to offer from either of these titles - be it the
main features or the bonus content.
- David Milchick
