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Directed by Written by Starring Presented by 98 minutes |
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THE
KILLING FLOOR Review
The best advice any writer would get is to draw your best stories based on personal experiences. With that said, there have been many films that feature the writer or someone involved in the entertainment industry. For the horror genre, some of the better films and novels have been based upon the craft of writing. The protagonist of THE KILLING FLOOR, a new movie from THINKFilm, is a horror literary agent who moves into a lavish apartment that seems to hold a dark past, and the result is a satisfying suspenseful thriller that is well made. David Lamont (Marc Blucas) is a successful agent wheeling and dealing in the horror genre. He is cocky, brash, egotistical, and very unsympathetic. He is in a position to make many enemies by his cold hearted nature of his profession, and it seems the only one loyal to him is his assistant Rebecca (Shiri Appleby). When he moves into an upscale New York City apartment, he thinks he is starting a new successful phase in his life. After feeling watched, he has an encounter with a neighbor (Reiko Aylesworth) who he begins a relationship with, and soon he begins to receive photos and tapes of a murder that took place in the same apartment. Soon, he receives videos of his recent actions and David, refusing to leave his home, starts to unravel as he becomes obsessed with knowing the identity of his stalker, and increasingly paranoid. In the role of David, Marc Blucas handles the film well in his first major leading role. David is ruthless but as an agent he needs to be. As the film progresses, his performance gets stronger as he starts to unravel. It is a surprising turn for Blucas who also seemed to take the role very seriously. Reiko Aylesworth is also very good as Audrey, a neighbor who takes a liking to David but her knowledge of the history of the apartment is put into question. There is a tense scene where David confronts Audrey about her connection with him, and she plays it in a way that you want to believe her, but aren’t quite sure you can. Aylesworth, who is best known as the hero agent Michelle Dessler in 24, shows she can just as convincing as a mysterious femme fatale. Shiri Appleby provides some of the film’s best moments as Rebecca, showing that she is more than just a pretty face. John Bedford Lloyd is also very good as Detective Stoll, who investigates the mystery surrounding the stalker who is terrorizing David. The film though belongs to Blucas who provides a strong presence throughout. Shot on a very low budget, THE KILLING FLOOR was written, produced, and directed by Gideon Raff, making his feature debut after working as Doug Liman’s assistant on MR. & MRS. SMITH, and he makes a very well done horror/thriller here, making great use of the film’s few locations. Primarily set in David’s apartment, the film does pack in a few solid scares with its sense of claustrophobia. The film has a bit of a Hitchcockian tone with nods to early Polanski as well as the film contains some bloody moments but the really good thing about this film is that the sharp editing of the film make it feel as if you are seeing more than what’s actually on screen. It’s nothing new to the genre, but it is a very solid and professional effort. Although the musical stinger is throughout at tense moments, it isn’t overdone and the music by Michael Wandmaker is above average. The script by Raff and Ryan Swanson is good, making it not too complex to follow, but provides a good flow. The dialogue, particularly by David, seems a little awkward in its delivery and provides the weakest points of the screenplay, but the flow of the film is good at 94 minutes, and the final act is surprisingly well done, as David’s experience in the horror genre with the novels he represents comes into play that doesn’t feel clichéd, and sets up a resolution that while isn’t shocking, is crafted well. In all, THE KILLING FLOOR is a good direct to DVD thriller that is intelligently crafted and put together, and respects the genre it represents both in David’s character and in the overall tone of the film. While far from perfect, it is a film that horror and thriller fans will be surprised by and worth checking out. THE KILLING FLOOR: 7 Out Of 10 Maggots CLICK HERE FOR AN INTERVIEW WITH STAR MARC BLUCAS!
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