100 Bloody Acres (2012)
Directed by Cameron and Colin Cairnes
Starring Damon Herriman, Angus Sampson, Anna McGahan, Oliver Ackland, Jamie Kristian, John Jarrett

Horror / comedy films are a tough nut to crack without damaging the integrity of the film. Meaning making it not that funny, or just not scary, but being able to find that perfect balance. Many have tried and many have failed. But the writer/director team of Cameron and Colin Cairnes have cracked that nut just right with this film. Showing that you can have a simple story, but with some great characters, can make a very entertaining movie.

Herriman and Sampson star as two brothers that run an organic fertilizer business that hasn’t been doing too good lately. They realize that by adding a special ingredient to their blend, it seems to work much better. Unfortunately, this ingredient comes from humans. When Reggie, stumbles across an accident victim on the side of the road, he sees his opportunity to grab up some more of that secret ingredient. But then picking up some hitchhikers from the city goes a little awry when they discover Reggie’s little secret hiding in the back of the truck. Reggie is the younger brother of the two and is constantly living under his older sibling Lindsey, always being beaten down by him, both physically and emotionally. So Reggie thinks this is the chance for him to show his brother that he is smarter than he thinks. Of course, when Reggie starts to fall for the female victim that he’s abducted, things get even more mixed up.

The real beauty of this film is that the humor is not forced, but just because of the characters and the situations. The story involves a very small cast, in pretty much one location, but is still interesting enough to hold the viewer’s attention. Reggie is not a bad guy, but is just trying to make the best of his situation, even though he knows it might not be the right thing to do. Living for so long under the thumb of his brother causes him to do things to try to prove something, even though it’s not something he’d normally do. Or has he puts it in the movie, “we’re not psychos alright…we’re just small business operators.”

There are plenty of situations here that will have you smiling, some laughing, and some that will throw you for a loop and wonder afterwards if you just seen what you think you seen. But no matter what is going on, you want to know what happens to these characters, which shows a well written and well acted script.  Herriman does an excellent job as the brow-beaten Reggie, the main character that you really feel sorry for. While Sampson does a stellar job as the older brother Lindsey, who is one of those that you’ll love to hate. If he looks familiar, that’s because you’ve seen him in the Insidious films. It was also great to see a small role from John Jarrett, who is always a joy to watch on screen.

This is another one of those titles that seemed to have come and gone way too quickly. It’s a great addition to that very short list of horror/comedies that actually work. Seek this one out.