Friday, September 11, 2015

Bloodied Bullies Rule the Day in Some Kind of Hate: A Film Review

*full disclosure: an online screener of this film was provided by RLJ Entertainment.

**there are some spoilers in this review.

Director: Adam Egypt Mortimer.

Writers: Brian DeLeeuw and Adam Egypt Mortimer.

Cast: Maestro Harrell, Grace Phipps, Spencer Breslin, Sierra McCormick and Lexi Atkins.

Some Kind of Hate is an upcoming horror release. To be distributed by RLJ Entertainment, the film had its World Premiere at the Stanley Film Festival, this year. Very intense in nature, the film's story revolves around bullying and a broken protagonist. He summons a demon for protection, dumbfoundedly. From here, the film turns into a slasher feature and gore aspects are a wrist-slashing spectacle. However, a few questions remain, including whether the villain was dispatched by herself or by another. Did she cut her own throat? The supernatural elements are prominent. And, Some Kind of Hate is a satisfying revenge story.

Lincoln (Ronen Rubinstein) comes from a broken home. He finds little respite at his local high school. Here, he is bullied by a sadist, until Lincoln fights back. Though, a fork to the face is not recommended to bullying victims. At a rehabilitation school, Lincoln is further bullied by a miniature minor villain. It takes awhile for the protagonist to start fighting back, again. But, love wins the day as he develops a motivating relationship with Kaitlin (Grace Phipps). The rest of the film shifts gears, with a supernatural being appearing in dark basements and abandoned barns. Moira (Sierra McCormick) has her own issues and they are unleashed on every character in the film. Few survive.

There are a couple of themes within the film. Love overcoming hate is the central one, overcoming bullying is another one. Hate gets the plot line rolling as Lincoln struggles with finding a place to belong, or fit in. Hate also causes conflict between many of the characters in the film. However, after the first act, Lincoln finds some solace in the character Kaitlin. She has her own damaged background, which is only alluded to; she is a "bad girl," according to Kaitlin. Together, they find a semi-functional alliance. The film thus changes into one character protecting or influencing the other. Their communal strength might just be enough to send Moria back into the abyss, from which she came from. Love is an unstoppable force in most films.

Moira's past puts a sour note on events. Some reviews have inadvertently mentioned that Moira kills herself. Yet, this is untrue. Moira is seen climbing up a set of stairs in the film's first scene. She pleads "help me, help me." But, no help is coming as she bursts into flames. It is obvious that Moira has met a fiery end. In later scenes, Moira confronts the counsellours. These secondary characters are her murderers. Moira questions why the lead counsellour would not help her, before she takes her revenge. In another scene, she says to Christine: "you are like all the rest." She is accusing Christine of being a bully, but she is much worse - a murderer. Christine also describes Moira as being "sick." So, it is likely that the counsellours felt overburdened by Moira's needs and they killed her, in order to reduce their overwhelming responsibilities. The counsellours killed Moria, despite her pleas for help.

Gorehounds will find lots of disturbing images in this outing. Blood spews everywhere, thanks to Moira's razorblades. Very interestingly, Moira kills her victims through self-harm. She often slices her wrist or throat. These actions are also felt by many of the other characters. Over a half-dozen minor and major characters meet a jugular spurting end, or similar bloody demise. The climax is just as spectacular. One character sets himself alight in order to masochistictly kill Moira. His injuries hurt both himself and the villain. The scene is impressive, with fire lighting a darkened basement and two characters going up in a pyre. Fans of horror will find many grotesque scenes within Some Kind of Hate; many will haunt you, or at least delight you.

Moira's killing spree is worth a watch. As well, the major characters are developed with some consideration. Meanwhile, the bullying theme is only slightly believable. The bullies are over-the-top nasty. Don't minor bullies need a motivation, too? Other bullies are just too tiny to offer a threat. A bully requires a domineering physical presence in order to intimidate others. Lincoln's reaction to these instances of bullying are also underwhelming. Besides, most bullying is over by the early teen years, in this reviewer's opinion. It is strange to see near adults still dealing with this issue, unless they would be causing their own victimization through immaturity. Still, Some Kind of Hate brings several important characters together for a fiery finale, which left this film watcher wowed and satisfied. Other viewers will also enjoy this bloody tale of revenge.

Overall: 7.5 out of 10.

A trailer for the film is available below:

A Some Kind of Hate Trailer on 28DLA

More details on the film's release are available at the RLJ Entertainment website:

Some Kind of Hate at RLJ Entertainment


Recommended release: Avenged on Amazon Direct


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