I first came across this film on the Chiller network during the summer of 2008. My mother and I were flipping through the channels when our eyes were caught by not only the title, but the current scene that we had stumbled upon (which one I cannot recall). I watched the movie in full the next time it aired
and honestly, I wasn't sure if I should've been completely horrified or entirely amused.
Dr. Evan Rendell (Larry Drake) is a seriously disturbed mental patient who intends to exact revenge on the town that 'murdered' his doctor father. Jennifer (Holly Marie Combs) is the unfortunate girl to catch Dr. Rendell's eerily-squinty eyes with the heart problem she is born with. Rendell's psychotic fascination with medical expertise has him prowling around for her, while leaving in his wake a grisly trail of tortured teenagers and mangled next-door neighbors (of which he uses various surgical implements on). Rendell ultimately meets his end at Jennifer's hands, but not without enduring some truly laughable circumstances first.
The plot was interesting at best, if not a little weird in the medical-fetish department. Some of the dialogue and the scenes that contain said dialogue are so derisory that you forget that this is supposed to be something of a horror film. The acting isn't terrible, but could've been better; Combs is probably the best of them all, but Drake's Rendell is just too creepy to really have a viewer-character connection with. The supporting characters well, let's just say that I guess it was appropriate that most of them were killed off, considering their roles were way too small to go any further with in the 95 minutes this film was shot in, and the number of them was just too many to grip. The simple and low-rate CG effects in the beginning of the film are giggle-worthy and not good enough to be taken seriously. Then again, I don't think this film is meant to be taken seriously at all.
Long story short: it isn't a bad movie, but it certainly isn't Hollywood gold either. If you're looking for blood and guts mixed with the occasional humor-laden one-liner, then this movie might be for you. Other than that, just a typical low-grade horror flick that barely succeeds in achieving the reactions it clearly wants from viewers.
My grade: C, 5/10
Dr. Evan Rendell (Larry Drake) is a seriously disturbed mental patient who intends to exact revenge on the town that 'murdered' his doctor father. Jennifer (Holly Marie Combs) is the unfortunate girl to catch Dr. Rendell's eerily-squinty eyes with the heart problem she is born with. Rendell's psychotic fascination with medical expertise has him prowling around for her, while leaving in his wake a grisly trail of tortured teenagers and mangled next-door neighbors (of which he uses various surgical implements on). Rendell ultimately meets his end at Jennifer's hands, but not without enduring some truly laughable circumstances first.
The plot was interesting at best, if not a little weird in the medical-fetish department. Some of the dialogue and the scenes that contain said dialogue are so derisory that you forget that this is supposed to be something of a horror film. The acting isn't terrible, but could've been better; Combs is probably the best of them all, but Drake's Rendell is just too creepy to really have a viewer-character connection with. The supporting characters well, let's just say that I guess it was appropriate that most of them were killed off, considering their roles were way too small to go any further with in the 95 minutes this film was shot in, and the number of them was just too many to grip. The simple and low-rate CG effects in the beginning of the film are giggle-worthy and not good enough to be taken seriously. Then again, I don't think this film is meant to be taken seriously at all.
Long story short: it isn't a bad movie, but it certainly isn't Hollywood gold either. If you're looking for blood and guts mixed with the occasional humor-laden one-liner, then this movie might be for you. Other than that, just a typical low-grade horror flick that barely succeeds in achieving the reactions it clearly wants from viewers.
My grade: C, 5/10