Diagonaldi Very well executed

SnoReptilePlenty Memorable, crazy movie

Cleveronix A different way of telling a story

Afouotos Although it has its amusing moments, in eneral the plot does not convince.

Michael Ledo The film starts out with three subplots. We have a newlywed couple who are musicians and killers. There is a second couple with different issues running away from home. And we meet a gay suicidal ex-sheriff. They all gather at a bed and breakfast where we have a non-introduced slasher wearing a mask aka DVD cover.The characters seemed quirky enough. Dan Creed and Ellis Greer had characters that carried the film. The slasher aspect was more like a WTF...seriously? Although it sort of tied into the "theme" and title. Burt Culver had a ridiculously weak character.Good sex scene. Should have left it gone on a few more seconds.Guide: F-word, sex, nudity (Emily Lopato, Tonya Kay with ugly pasties...I think.)

FlashCallahan So we have a winner for the most hilarious title of a film this year. A film with that title would have usually been associated with Brian Bosworth, or some old western film starring Charles Bronson, or any actor from that era who would suit the word 'grizzled'....But this film features newlywed, hitch-hiking serial killers, a brother and sister on the run, and a suicidal, alcoholic cop.Of course, they get caught in an increasingly bizarre series of murders committed by a masked killer near a mountain-town bed and breakfast....It's another one of those very deceptive horror films that have numerous 'favourable' review highlights on the cover of the DVD, stating things like 'it's the best retro slasher this week!', or 'scarier than death...literally'.If you've seen a lot of horror films, especially those that are of a low budget and cost less than £8.00 in your local supermarket, you know that you should take these quotes with a huge pinch of salt and lower your expectations.But when a film has this title, you cannot help but keep those expectations high, and hope for once, that someone has made a nostalgic reference to those wonderful stalk 'n slash films of the eighties.This isn't it, and because it's trying to homage so many different films, it gets lost in it's own convolutions. Every character is suspect, but there are ones who are just that little bit more creepy, having strange traits, or saying inappropriate things so they are obviously red herrings, but it's fun to see the writers of the film think they can fool the viewer.Aside from the film being quite bizarre for no good reason, it does hold a few things you would associate with those films of the eighties, namely terrible acting and unnecessary nudity.And that wonderful trope of people going to the wrong place at the wrong time, it's an age old problem that never seems to disappear from lazy writing.But the ending, while it's supposed to be shocking and turn the narrative on it's head, you kind of guess that this was the case, as there is always the quiet couple who never really stray of the path, but it is quite amazing that the final shot is the rationale for the title.So all in all, it's just another poorly made horror film, trying to disguise the fact by having the DVD cover look like the cover for 'Hatchet'.Aside from the audacious ending, and a turn of events once they reach the cabin, it's pretty forgettable stuff.

David Roggenkamp This film goes into a shattered mess of story; we don't get to see what it is about until much later. What looks like a film moving in one direction, takes an entirely different turn – almost as if it was three movies in one. We finally get to the meat of the film in the latter third. It wasn't what I was expecting.This movie involves the brutal and often grotesque killings of other people. These do not always have any apparent reason other than the fact the person was in the way or simply due to what I would label as hedonism. The killings are pretty standard as far as slasher films go, but this film doesn't exactly strike me as a slasher. Instead it is more like a psychological horror movie with some grotesque killings. The film does delve into some areas of the aftermath of immoral integrity; but by this point most of the characters have snapped anyway.I will say the film 'feels' believable, but it wasn't something I myself was comfortable watching. There was some suspense to keep me watching, but the brutality of it was enough to make me question watching it further. I do not recommend this film for anyone with a weak stomach.Originally posted to Orion Age (http://www.orionphysics.com/? p=10196).

Bloodmarsh Krackoon 'After Dark Films' is known to be a breeding ground for really bad films - and the 2015 collection doesn't help their case whatsoever.'Bastard' is about a group of really... interesting people being stalked by, well, the least screwed up individual in the film - two newlywed serial killers, two socially awkward runaways, one suicidal/cross dressing/homosexual cop. If you can get by the worst collection of characters in any film so far this year, you'll probably struggle to get through some of their performances. Ellis Greer, who plays the female serial killer, is probably the worst actor/actress in the bunch. She's a snarling, nasty, foul beast - and that's her most tolerable moments in the film. Dan Creed hams it up, as her better half, but he's simply not there yet, as an actor. The newlywed killers should have been the stand outs in this film, because who wouldn't want to see a showdown between three psychopaths? It simply wouldn't have worked with this cast, though.As the film rolls on, you start to sympathize with the masked mad man, because he has to put the effort into trying to rid his town of these horrible characters. You also start to consider that maybe one of these people will end up sporting the mask - a twist that you'll hope doesn't exist, because he/she will have to pull off the whole revealing climax scene, that no actor in the film is capable of doing. You won't have long to wait before all is revealed, and your fear turns into reality. Actually, the reveal is about midway, giving you an early out, if you wish to do so - and you probably will. I'm ashamed to say, I made it through the entire film.Random Ramblings of a Madman: When I first heard about 'Bastard,' I was hopeful for a solid slasher film, but when I saw the words 'After Dark,' hope turned to despair. It's a complete mess, and should not have been released.