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Cast: Nicholas J. Leinbach, Derrick Bishop, Anton Troy, Meredith Laine, Linda Bella, Allison Ochmanek, Teodorico Paul Sajor
A young couple take a back road while driving home from a road trip to avoid a traffic jam. They encounter the serial killer Purge and Shelly is murdered but Eric survives, at least physically. A year later, Eric's brother Juan and a group of his high school grad friends take a road trip to Purge's hideout. When Eric finds out he heads out to save his brother and get revenge on Purge. The six teens will now be judged but will any of them survive the night?
First off I want to thank Dustin over at Midnight Releasing for giving me the chance to check out this new horror movie. "Filth to Ashes, Flesh to Dust" is a horror film much like those from the past including "Hills Have Eyes" but it also brings a lot of it's own ideas to the table as well. The film wastes no time getting to the point, in it's opening scenes we are witness to Purge and his twisted way of weeding out the imperfect people in the world, the scene cuts to Eric and Shelley who decide to make a bathroom stop on an isolated road but they are in Purge's territory and in a heated battle Shelley is killed. Eric is forever a changed man after that moment but another woman that was on the road as well tells Eric that Purge isn't dead and after he finds out that his brother and a group of friends went to his liar he vows to save him and get rid of Purge once and for all. When the group decides to explore Purge's hideaway they find out he is indeed alive and well and now they must fight to stay alive.
"Filth to Ashes, Flesh to Dust" brings with it plenty of action and gore but it also brings with it well-developed characters and a high level of suspense which is something that has been sorely missing from slashers films. Two examples are Eric, this is a young man that had everything going his way till that tragic day, now he is a hollow shell who constantly has nightmares of Shelley. He's forever changed and can't let go of the past. Another is Purge, this is one demented villain that believes it's his job to rid the world of all it's imperfect people and he does it in a swift and brutal matter, this is a new horror icon you will won't soon forget. The rest of the characters in the film are just as developed which is important here so that the audience has something to invest in.
This is Director, Paul Morrell's first feature film but you would never know it by watching the movie, everything about the film looks and sounds great. For an Independent film it looks like it was done on a much bigger budget and the sound is terrific as well. Morrell also did a terrific job selecting the locations, they do a great job creating the feeling of isolation and atmosphere, this is a new Director to keep your eyes on and I look forward to all his future projects. The cast is another great thing about the movie, each and every actor in the film did a terrific and realistic job playing their characers, I can't really pick out just one but I can say Derrick Bishop did a wonderful job playing Eric, he really brought all the emotions needed to play his character. Another stand-out here was Nicholas J. Leinbach, his Purge was big, mean and scary and never once had to say a word to have you frightened. The rest of the cast including, Anton Troy, Meredith Laine, Linda Bella, Allison Ochmanek and Teodorico Paul Sajor to name a few were all terrific.
The film has plenty of action and lots of gore but it also brings with it tension, suspense and thrills around every corner. It will have you clinging to the edge of your seat till the credits being to roll. I also liked how the film ended, how it gave Eric closure to the horrible ordeal he faced, after all the terrific violence and gore it finishes with a more tender human touch, brilliant. I loved the film and I urge every fan of horror to keep their eyes peeled for this one, the film is going to have a small theatrical release in the near future before it heads to DVD so if it's playing in your area I highly recommend checking it out on the big screen. I will update this review as more information comes in. "Filth to Ashes, Flesh to Dust" is a balls to the wall horror flick, it's one we as fans have been waiting to see, yes it's that good so be sure to check it out.
Released by Midnight Releasing
***** Out Of *****