20141108: Horror Review--The Revenant

The Revenant

1. Fundamentals, reception.
1. American live action feature length film, 2009, rated R, 117 minutes, horror.
2. IMDB: 6.4/10.0 from 8,239 audience ratings.
3. Rotten Tomatoes: 56% on the meter; 51% liked it from 2,140 audience ratings.
4. I saw this on the SyFy channel.
5. Written and directed by D. Kerry Prior.
6. Starring: David Anders as Bart Gregory, Chris Wylde as Joey Luebner, Louise Griffiths as Janet, Jacy King as Mathilda.


2. Setup and Plot
1. Bart gets shot in Iraq and dies from it.  He was embalmed, and his coffin was put in the grave.  For better or for worse, the coffin was not buried.  Bart awakens that night, leaves his coffin and finds a nearby morgue.  After cutting the cords tying his mouth shut, and ripping off some nasty looking skin, Bart goes to seek out his friend Joey.


2. Joey is taken aback.  He was at Bart's funeral.  Bart looks rather bad.  At dawn, Bart drops to the floor.  At dusk, he rises again.  After a botched mugging against them, Bart and Joey discover that Bart needs blood to repair his body.  These traits characterise a 'revenant.'


3. Through a bumbling progression, Bart and Joey grow to like killing violent bad guys and draining their blood.  Unfortunately, Bart helps Joey become a revenant, and the two of them become terribly more effective as they gather money, better weapons, and experience killing gangsters.


4. Also unfortunately, they are not careful enough about disposing of the corpses of the bad guys that they kill and drink the blood of.  Some of them return as revenants, and with memory intact and with revenge intended.


5. Perhaps more dangerous for Bart and Joey is the fact that the authorities have noticed their vigilantism.  They are tracked.


6. Who would the greater threat be for our heroes, the revenge seekers, or those who would use them as tools?


3. Conclusions
1. One line summary: Two friends become undead vigilantes.
2. Three stars of five


4. Scores
1. Cinematography: 6/10 Reasonably good, but awfully dark. 


2. Sound: 5/10 A bit odd during the murder scenes.


3. Acting: 6/10 The two principals were rather good.  The others, not so much.


4. Screenplay: 7/10 The narration moves along nicely.