It’s time to check out a trio of low budget indies that feature a whole lot of gut munching—and one even gets an honorary spot on the homo horror movies page.
WENDIGO: BOUND BY BLOOD (2010)
Despite Bound by Blood being only 73 minutes long, there are so many movies based on the Wendigo legend that I don’t know that you should bother with this rather rough film.
Not unlike some other Wendigo films I’ve blogged about, this one doesn’t actually have a monster. It’s more of a possession situation that turns people into zombie-like cannibals.
There’s a sheriff and doctor investigating murders, there’s an assassin subplot, there are a couple of people being protected by government agents, and there are a bunch of oblivious hunters.
Eventually everyone ends up running through the woods shooting at each other and getting eaten by those who’ve already been affected by the Wendigo curse.
It’s all a bit confusing and not a very polished production. Plus…it’s implied that the last victim is a puppy! WTF?
PIT STOP (aka: Acid Pit Stop) (2020)
Pit Stop tries so hard to work as a low budget zombie rave horror comedy. It even features a cameo from veteran actor Bruce Payne, but the ridiculous curly-haired wig he wears makes him look like a clown, so it’s impossible to take his performance serious…even if this is a zomcom and he is comic relief…
A group of frenemies—two guys and two girls—ends up carpooling to a rave. First they stop at Payne’s house for drugs. He proves to be a bit of a nut case, and the reactions of the stars to what they’re experiencing at least assured me that they can hold their own with the comic timing.
They then head to the rave. This is one of those situations where it looks like the director had a bunch of friends dress up as club kids and filmed the whole thing in someone’s basement.
Soon after the drugs are passed around and someone keels over from taking them, the raving turns into craving, with dancers going all zombie and feasting on each other. Even as low budget as this scene looks, there are some promising gore moments, over-the-top situations, and funny fights with the zombies.
But the film dies as quick as the dancers for most of its running time. The foursome is abducted by the mastermind behind the drugs, and his excessive exposition just drags the movie down.
The last few minutes resurrect the zombie battles, but that’s not enough to save the movie. Not to mention, we needed more of this muscle zomboy…
GHOUL SCOUT ZOMBIE MASSACRE (2018)
At last it’s time for the honorary gay horror flick. This had potential to be a queer cult horror film if it didn’t run 111 minutes long…which could have been achieved by cutting out excessive filler that seems to be going for a John Waters trashy vibe, something that never works for me (including when John Waters did it).
A mad scientist who makes gay porn creates a serum to turn pretty boy rockers into his sex slaves. And the movie doesn’t hold back in depicting gay porn scenarios and a gay relationship.
The scientist has his muff diving prison guard sister and the inmates from her female prison spread the formula to the boys by bringing them laced Girl Scout cookies.
During a gig, the guys begin turning into zombies and eating the concertgoers. This is where the film finds its footing as a low budget zombie flick. All the zombie action is awesome, and the zombie makeup is quite serviceable.
Unfortunately, the zombie plot is watered down by endless schlock that isn’t as funny as it intends to be. For instance, we don’t need to see the scientist’s man servant, who comes across as a mentally challenged geek version of Angel from the Rent film, sing the entire “Papa Can You Hear Me?” song from Yentl with spoof lyrics.
At least the numerous filler sex scenes after the gang hides out in the scientist’s house are sleazy enough to entertain…and segue perfectly into nasty zombie scenes.
There’s even a zombaby. How I wish the film would be edited down by thirty minutes to give us the tightly paced, trashy zombie flick that’s buried in the reel.
