[SAVAGELAND is
now available on home video.]
Review by Bob Ignizio
Sorry Marvel fans, SAVAGELAND
isn't a surprise entry in the MCU bringing Kazar and Shanna the She Devil to
cinematic life. Rather it is a horror film presented in faux documentary format
about Francisco Salazar (Noe Montes), an illegal immigrant laborer and amateur photographer
accused of committing a mass murder spree in a small Arizona border town. The
evidence for his guilt is weak, but thanks to anti-immigrant prejudice and the desire to find
a scapegoat, Salazar gets convicted. On his appeal, however, new and disturbing
evidence seems to indicate that not only is he innocent, but the real culprits
represent an unimaginable horror.
Not a bad premise, to be sure, and throwing a little social
commentary about current attitudes towards illegal immigrants into the mix
gives the film some added thematic weight. SAVAGELAND was conceived before Donald Trump's
presidential run and talk of wall building, but there is a character clearly
modeled after Sheriff Joe Arpao (Sheriff Parano, played by George Lionel
Savage), and the general attitudes expressed by this character and others are
in line with things Trump and his supporters have said and done with regards to
immigration. Through this subtext, the film does a good job of conveying the
dangers that a more aggressive policy towards illegal immigrants can have
unintended negative consequences.
No BLAIR WITCH
shaky cam or amateur-hour filmmaking here. The trio of writer/directors
– Phil Guidry, Simon Herbert, and David Whelan – do a great job of making SAVAGELAND feel like a real documentary
of the "talking heads" variety, trotting out the usual assortment of experts
(including comic book writer and "Swamp Thing" co-creator Len Wein as
a photographic expert) and interested parties to tell their
stories and offer analysis of the case. For variety, there's a computer
animated map showing the timeline of events, and a prison interview with
Salazar. But most of the film's chills come from the very simple photographs
allegedly taken by Salazar during the massacre.
SAVAGELAND isn't
the kind of movie that tries to make audiences jump out of their seats every
few minutes. And even though there are some bloody crime scene photos shown,
it's not really trying to gross anyone out, either. Instead, this is a
thoughtful, slow burn horror film that delivers a few genuinely creepy
chills and a little food for thought. Eventually it leads up to a violent payoff that will likely satisfy
some viewers, while leaving others wishing the film had ended a few minutes sooner when things were slightly more ambiguous. 3 out of 4 stars.
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