These Blood Hunters Needed More Teeth: A Film Review

*full disclosure: an online screener of this film was provided by director Tricia Lee.

**there are minor spoilers here.

Director: Tricia Lee.

Writer: Corey Brown.

Cast: Lara Gilchrist, Benjamin Arthur, Torri Higginson and Mark Taylor.

Blood Hunters is a film from director Tricia Lee (Silent Retreat) and writer Corey Brown (Clean Break). This creature feature recently had a showing at the FrightFest Film Festival, in the United Kingdom. Very indie, the film takes place, exclusively, in an underground medical facility. Here, the lighting and setting look great. However, almost all of the characters are unlikeable and most are immoral, especially Marion (Torri Higginson). Marion causes most of the film's chaos, due to her incompetency. The film's overly sappy tone also dampens the mood as Blood Hunters focuses on dialogue, over tension, conflict and real terror. Blood Hunters is a dramatic horror feature and it will appeal to some, but it did not entertain this viewer.

Marion Dobbs is a computer technician. She uses her programming skills to murder others. She is curious what her employers are up to, so she releases the monsters in the basement. These are not your usual test subjects, though. Instead, the creatures are attracted to blood and they tear their way through the facility's staff. Marion is not done with hatching these little Frankensteins, out of jail. She still has others to kill, through her lack of ability. In a later scene, Marion believes she can destroy the medical facility and all of the monsters, inside. But, Marion is the greatest monster! Staying consistently within character, she fails to pull off an explosion and at least one other character finds a grisly end. Marion is the real villain in this title.

Good use of eerie green lighting, here.

The film's tone is serious; it also overly sentimental. Most of the characters stare longingly at each other, in various situations. They utilize too much dialogue to describe their haunted pasts. In one scene, set in a small prayer room, Henry (Benjamin Arthur) and the protagonist, Ellie (Lara Gilchrist) talk of their previous lives. There is lots of mood lighting. Meanwhile, the characters rehash how they died (don't ask). However, there are murderous creatures lurking in the hallways and no one is taking this dire situation seriously. In another late scene, Henry and Ellie have given up. Instead of fighting back against the dark lurkers, they may have chosen death, or more accurately martyrdom; these events take place off-screen, so their final choices cannot be confirmed. People do not behave like this! When faced with a challenge, most rise to the occasion, or at least defend themselves. Blood Hunters tries to come off as a tearjerker, while it fails to find a more terrifying mood, appropriate to horror films.

Finally, almost none of the characters are likeable. It is difficult to empathize with a heavy a drug user, who abuses her son, by shouting and haranguing him. This is a description of the protagonist, Ellie. As well, Henry has committed suicide. He has been resuscitated thanks to strange medicine. Still, cowards are difficult to root for. Father Stewart, played by Julian Richings, understands morality: "the world has forgotten morality and decency." He even points out some of the many character foibles: "you [Ellie] spend your life searching for your next high." So, Stewart understands how some of the characters have failed. Yet, he falls in with Marion and her incompetency, by sabotaging a plan that would secure the facility and end the creature's blood fueled reign of terror. Only the character and intern, George (Mark Taylor), shows any heroism. He helps Ellie with a much needed abortion, while holding onto the remains of his gnawed arm. Overall, most of these characters are people you would want to avoid, if you saw them at the local shopping mall. More likely, you would find some of them in the nearby psychiatric facility.

Blood Hunters is currently on a film festival run. The film is very much a dramatic horror feature, where the focus is on dialogue and drawn-out, sappy exchanges. Action elements are very limited and so are conflicted interactions. Strangely, many of the creatures, in the film, just mope about darkened hallways. They show very little killer instinct. The filmmakers do utilize set design, lighting and music for affect. But, that affect lacks impact. As well, the characters show very few positive attributes, with Marion the worst of the bunch. A few dramatic film goers may like this outing, but this reviewer was hoping for more terror, from a title called Blood Hunters.

Overall: 6 out of 10.

*previously titled One Drop.

A trailer for the film is available here, on 28DLA: A Blood Hunters Trailer

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Posted in: 2016,canada,canadian,creature feature,creature feature movie review,horror movie review,independent,indie,julian richings,movie,movie review,review