The Revenant
Directed by: Kerry Prior
USA, 110 min
 
Cast:  David Anders, Cathy Shim, Louise Griffiths, Clint Jung, Chris Wylde
Toronto Theatrical Premiere

Marking the second film of the zombie appreciation night at TAD comes The Revenant, a film which is actually about vampires and not a zombie flick at all. So I guess technically, TAD was having an "undead" appreciation night. As a special bonus, Director Kerry Prior was in attendance to not only introduce the film but for a Q&A afterwards.

The Revenant is an entertaining undead buddy film at its core with small amounts of comedy thrown in. Bart is home from the Iraq War, but there’s a problem, he's dead. Better yet, he's undead and his flesh is starting to fall off and he's vomiting nasty black stuff all over. When his best friend Joey realizes Bart needs blood to survive (specifically human blood), the two set off on a journey that involves male bonding on a whole new level. Taking out the city's lowlifes and using them as sustenance, the two close friends share in a few things they never thought possible.

David Anders (Bart) and Chris Wylde (Joey) have an onscreen rapport that is so natural you'd almost think these two had been working together for years. According to Director Kerry Prior, the two actors hit it off and their onscreen presence is indicative of their offscreen camaraderie. The realism of the friendship between these two really helps sell the film. As the comedy is never over the top, you can almost put yourself in the situation portrayed on film... almost.

While the buddy comedy portion of the film plays quite well, Director Kerry Prior made an interesting decision to turn the last quarter of the film into more of an action film.  This plays well at first giving Bart & Joey nightly encounters ending with violent outcomes. This violence combined with the buddy comedy gives The Revenant a sort of Bonnie & Clyde/Thelma & Louise esthetic. While those two films ended in a blaze of glory, The Revenant decides to go one step further.  This is where the movie lost me. The last 15 minutes of the film go on an odd trip into very campy territory. Without giving anything away I'll just say that the ending of the film feels much "larger", more "crowd pleasing" than anything previously and thus felt really out of place.

Had the film ended before things got too campy OR had the film played up the camp from the start, I'd easily say it was a good watch throughout. As it is, I'll recommend you catch the first 3/4 of the film and leave the last 1/4 to your own discretion. Kerry Prior has managed to put together a decent low budget film but it is the acting of David Anders and Chris Wylde that steals the show. I look forward to seeing more from these two actors.