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Released by: Saturn's Core
Released on: October 24, 2024
Director: Conall Pendergast
Cast: Eshe Mercer-James, Etan Muskat, Conall Pendergast, Erica Danya Goldblatt, Clayton Hayes
Year: 2000
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Flesh Freaks - Movie Review:
In the shot-on-Mini DV, micro-budget, zombie flick Flesh Freaks (2000), directed by then 18 year-old highschool student Conall Pendergast, worm-like parasites have infested the dead in the jungle, transforming them into ghoulish flesh-starved zombies. Unfortunately a research scientists named Barry (Conall Pendergast) who survives the zombie carnage in the Central American jungles accidentally transports the worm-like creatures black to Canada, where the parasite-infested undead threaten to infect the the whole campus. Now it's up to him and his pal Stan (Etan Muskat), alongside janitor Erno (Dan Zabbal), and co-eds Lea (Erica Danya Goldblatt) and Jane (Eshe Mercer-James), to put a stop to outbreak before it gets to far out of hand and potentially infecting the whole planet.
Like most every SOV flick I've ever seen I went into this with some small amount of trepidation, after being burned by a few recent SOV watches that bored me to tears. I'm not down on all SOV flicks, but for every mind-melting SOV oddity like Things (1989), The Soultangler (1987) or Boardinghouse (1982) there are a dozen others that are total snooze-fests. I am pleased to say that the no-budget Flesh Freaks is not overly dull, thanks in part to some decent production value with jungle footage the director shot in Belize while he joined his parents on a real-life Mayan archeological dig, and footage shot around a university in Canada, which adds some low-rent pizazz to the proceedings. Another elements that enhances this one is that we get plenty camera movement, which saves it from wallowing in boring static shots, and we even get some low-rent video editing flourishes and scenes transitions that also keep it interesting - things which are often largely absent from a lot of these no-budget wonders.
Now don't get me wrong, this is not slick my any measure, no sir, it's still amateur hour shot on consumer grade Mini DV technology from the late-90s, so it still pretty fucking ugly. What makes this different is that you can feel and appreciate the excitement that was happening behind-the-scenes, there's that palpable sense of youthful enthusiasm and an underlying passion for schlocky horror, rough though it might be, but there is an undeniable a spark of creativity that bleeds through and brought a smile to my face.
The effects are very low-rent, with undead ghouls that are cheesy black skinned, rubber-masked monsters with blood-shot eyes, their lipped eroded from their face exposing their teeth, they look ridiculously cheap for sure, but again, you can feel the love behind it all, and it's not super serious, there's an undercurrent of ridiculousness without being straight-up zany. The whole affair has the beating heart of Italian zombie schlock along the lines of Bruno Mattei's Hell of the Living Dead or Andrea Bianchi’s Burial Ground, but on a shoestring budget. There's plenty I loved about it, it's a spunky ultra-DIY horror flick made by a teenager, I appreciate the passion behind it, but it's also got some major pacing issues, even at just under 80's minutes it feels a bit long, and padded with scenes of wildlife, scenery and insects shot on location in Belize, and tons of exposition dumps. So while I appreciate it quite a bit, I know viewers milage will vary greatly depending on your aptitude for ultra low-budget schlock.
Flesh Freaks - Blu-ray Review:
Flesh Freaks (2000) arrives on region-free Blu-ray from Saturn's Core in 1080i HD framed in the original 1.33:1 fullscreen aspect ratio. Shot on Mini DV, this fares better that a lot of the earlier SOV stuff shot on camcorder/VHS, while still not razor sharp, but always watchable, just a bit rough hewn, incapable of rising above it's consumer grade Mini DV source limitations. Audio comes by way of English DTS-HD MA with optional English subtitles. The track is fairly flat sounding, but it delivers dialogue exchanges in an intelligible manner, sound effects and score don't have much of any depth to them, but it does the job just fine, like the video it never rises above it's source limitations.
Saturn's Core absolutely stiff this release with extras, starting off with a brand new Audio Commentary with writer/director Conall Pendergast moderated by Justin Decloux of Gold Ninja Video, which gets into the genesis of the project, the influence of the cheesy K. Gordon Murray films Pendergast enjoyed on TV as a kid, and his "lost" first film - The Radioactive Man, which was a riff on 50's atomic-age terrors he made when he was just nine, but he ruined it by trying to give it faux scratches by actually opening up the VHS cassette and scratching up the VHS tape! He speaks of how his parents were archeologist which allowed him to see the world and film exotic locations to use in his film, and casting friends to appear in the film. Also addressed with is the odd three-part story structure, the cheap special effects, the various locations in Belize and Canada. It's a terrific track and the pair of them come off as genuinely excited to talk about the flick. We also get an Archival commentary with writer / director Conall Pendergast, which is well-worth a listen on it's own, and while it does cover some of the same material there's plenty of alternate nuggets he conveys about the locations, the cast, shooting specific scenes and the special effects, shooting the footage and scenes in Belize, and talking about the film's shortcomings, and some technical talk about how certain scenes were finished in post-production.
The 21-min Kill and Eat the Flesh Freaks - an interview with writer/director Conall Pendergast moderated by Justin Decloux covers some of the same material as the commentary, but compressed. Pendergast gets into his early films and movie inspirations like the schlocky K. Gordon Murray flicks, his first film The Radioactive Killer, the zombie flicks that inspired Flesh Freaks, the footage he shot in Belize on his parents archaeology dig, recruiting friends to act, and the film's home video releases, as well as the importance of keeping things simple, plan ahead, and only shoot what's gonna end up on the screen. It's an energetic interview with lots of energy and enthusiasm.
We also get 4-min of Outtakes for Flesh Freaks, a 3-min Still Gallery featuring images from both Flesh Freaks and Kill Them and Eat Them with some nice higher-res images of the rubber zombie masks and carnage, and various home video releases including one that is clearly a knock-off of Lucio Fulci's Zombie. Also included are the 2-min Trailers for Flesh Freaks and Pendergast's Kill Them And Eat Them.
But wait, that's not all, not by a long shot! We get another full-length bonus film by way of the 80-min Kill Them and Eat Them (2023), Pendergast's follow-up to Flesh Freaks, This time we get the same sort of low-rent, gore-soaked shot-on-Mini DV = shenanigans, about a mad scientist named Doctor Gore who is hellbent on turning people into mutant "Skeletoids". This bonus film includes a new Audio Commentary with writer / director Conall Pendergast and actor Michael Wood moderated by Justin Decloux of Gold Ninja Video, which starts off with conversation about shooting at the abandoned Brickworks in Toronto for the opening scenes, using it without permission, changes tot he story while filming, and the use of animation during the opening titles. There's also plenty of talk about the various locations, shooting on Sony Mini DV, the lack of color correction, the casting, shooting the film while his parents were away in England, repurposing the Flesh Freaks masks, other low-fi special effects, and of course lots of "I wish I had done' that sort of looking back at the production.
My favorite set of extras in the disc are of a collection of Conall Pendergast Short Films that span 2001-2023. In the 5-min black and white short Flicker (2001) a couple discover a reel of film and a projector in the basement, unleashing a familiar looking cinematic killer. The 3-min Satan’s Psycho Ghoul (2001) features another familiar rubber-masked monster from Kill Them and Eat Them, whom we follow as he wakes up and goes through his morning routine, brushing his teeth and eating breakfast, before going out onto the street to slash away at a victim. The 9-min Guts of the Gods (2006) features a cool animated opening title sequence, it's a fun little splatter short with some good gore. The 5-min Legend of the Seven Bloody Torturers (2007) is one of the most stylish of the live-action shorts, a black and white tale about an accountant who i upset to discover that the Legend of Seven Bloody Torturers in fact only has six torturers. The three remaining shorts offer a nice change of pace as they are all animated, and all having been written, directed and animated by Pendergast, tackling a new visual medium. First up is The Cyclops Diet (2000), a 3-min short in which the mythological character Odysseus diet-shames the cave-dwelling Cyclops into not eating his ship's crew. I love the animation style and character design, it's well-made and has a strong voice cast. Next is the 4-min Self Actualization of the Werewolf Woman (2021), a striking and evocative black and white animated short with a brief turn to color at the end. Again, I love the style, the texture of it, both the urban subway train setting and forest scenes look terrific, and the score is pretty great. The story itself is about the titular werewolf woman encountering a vampire on the subway. The final short is the 8-min The Noonday Demon (2023), showcasing a different animation style, with cool backgrounds and interstitials, the story centers around a man who reconnects with his childhood sweetheart on a quaint seaside beach, only for a dark secret to be revealed. Pendergast, he's quite a talent when it comes to indie animation, I was quite impressed, much more so than either of the SOV feature films to be honest.
The last of the disc extras are the 3-min Monsters from the Cutting Room Floor which are outtakes from Kill Them and Eat Them with humorous factoids and text that pop-up, plus we get 4-min of Deleted Scenes for Kill Them and Eat Them. The single-disc Blu-ray arrives in a clear keepcase with a Reversible Wrap featuring newly commissioned artwork by Kristy Eruhow.
Flesh Freaks - The Final Word:
Flesh Freaks (2000) is a no-budget slice of zombie carnage that is spirited, gory and infused with it's teenage director's passion for vintage schlock. It will most certainly not be for all tastes, in fact, unless you're a deep-diving lover of DIY/SOV schlock this will probably have zero appeal, and even for some hardened horror fans this will be an acquired taste... but if you're in that special tier of horror fandom who appreciates amateur auteurs and rough-hewn splatter flicks, well, there are treats to be had here. Kudos to Saturn's Core for their dedication to these SOV rarities, offering a well-stocked disc chock full of extras.
