Under the Bed – Pure Taboo – Directors – Joanna Angel and Fred August – Cast – Emma Hix, Emily Willis, Lacy Lennon, Katrina Jade, Joanna Angel, Michael Vegas, Small Hands.
****1/2 stars
If you were a fan of, and remember those cheap, sleazy grind house films of the 70’s and 80’s, this is going to be a great adventure for you. Think back to directors like Robert Rodriguez, Wes Craven, Roger Corman and early Quentin Tarantino and films like Last House on the Left, Maniacs, The Beyond, Caged Heat and many more. They were horror films with silly plots, bad acting, hints of sexual activity and became cult classics. Here Joanna Angel and Fred August have taken that grind house genre and given it what the originals never could steamy all out sex scenes. In addition there is some super casting, great settings and visuals plus excellent performances throughout.
The opening just before the credits will be enough to make sure your heart is okay. Two girls arrive at a cabin, weird sounds, a full moon, a disheveled man in the shadows naked. Then a smashed car, screaming girl, broken glass, bloody bodies in a cemetery and a hand rises out of the ground for her as she screams. Then come the opening credits as we see this dirty, barefoot man (Michael Vegas) walking to a table in the woods and ready to do some grizzly work and prepare a rabbit for his dinner. Now he hears strange noises and looks around. Next we see the girls (Emma Hix and Emily Willis) drive up to the cabin. Emma is visibly shaking as she is not used to being so isolated, but Emily tells her they will be just fine. Of course they are unaware that the man has been watching them from a distance out in the woods behind a tree.
The girls spend the day relaxing by the lake as Emily continues to assure Emma that they will be fine while they are there. Later that night they settle in to watch a movie. The thunder and lightning outside add an eerie quality and soon they are engaged in a very hot lesbian encounter on the soda. As they finish, the man, now naked, appears out of nowhere. He talks to Emma and she is shown washing her bloody hands and quick glimpses of a females bloodied body. But what takes place from that point on, I will leave for you to watch and see just what kind of twist this first vignette takes.
In the second vignette, written and directed by Joanna Angel, we see Lacy Lennon coming into the cemetery and she is beside herself with sorrow. She sees the grave stone for Joanna Angel, then Katrina Jade and Aaron Hands and she is devastated, leaves the flowers and says a silent prayer. Then the story goes back a year earlier and we see Lacy driving with Small Hands her boyfriend, next to her. In the backseat are Katrina and Joann, both high, drunk, drinking, making fun of the couple and just creating havoc. Then suddenly a big crash and then we see the smashed car that was in the opening. There are the bloodied, glass covered bodies of the three as Lacy awakes. Then the title of this segment “The Night They Came For Lacy” flashes on the screen.
Back to the present and Lacy is at home and still devastated over what happened and is on edge. Claps of thunder rattle her nerves and she goes up stairs toi try and rest. As she gets in bed she gets some weird text messages about the accident not being her fault and other strange things. She hears noises, gets out of the bed and looks under it and finds a necklace that belonged to one of them. Now she is really out of it. Lacy gets dressed and heads back to the cemetery and that’s when things really take a strange and bloody turn. What happens? I will let you find out in this scene as well. Why should I spoil your viewing fun.
If you enjoy a macabre film with steamy sizzling sex, along with blood curdling screams of horror and bodies that appear and disappear, then you will have a blast with this. Directors Angel and August have really done a great spot on presentation of the grindhouse style feature with all the elements in the right places and doses. The cast was absolutely fantastic in bringing their characters to life, or death displaying some excellent acting chops. The settings, effects and visuals all added to the edge of your seat drama. This is something very different that you should make sure to see. “Under the Bed” from Pure Taboo, is an early award nom for next year.
Art Koch, National Features & DVD Editor, NightMoves M agazine and AAN
