Director – Shawn Burkett (The Sleeping Soul, Bludgeon)
Starring – Payton Krebs (Season’s Greeting), Ayse Howard (The Sleeping Soul), and Scott Gillespie (Bludgeon)
Release Date – 2016
Rating – 3.5/5
Concept Media is no stranger to my reviews. I was brought on to Horror Society in January 2013 and not long after than I came in contact with Shawn Burkett who founded Concept Media. Since then I have reviewed all their releases starting with Bludgeon and soon after The Sleeping Soul, Midsummer Nightmares, A Shameless Revenge, Watch This!, and all their shorts.
Then Concept Media announced Stag and Don’t Fuck in the Woods. Shawn and crew tried several times to film DFitW but something happened which resulted in no new material from CM for awhile until late last year when they released a new anthology film Season’s Greetings and the new short, The Lamb. Shawn was kind enough to send me over a link to the online screener. Thanks Shawn and fuck you!
**Spoiler Alert**The story follows a beautiful young woman who wakes up in the woods covered in blood with no memory as to how she got there. She soon finds herself in the interrogation room where she is being questioned in regards to her roommates murder. She is acting strange while answering the questions and goes as far as bouncing her head off the table making herself bleed. She then starts revealing the circumstances that lead to her finding herself in the woods covered in blood. These revelations send the detective into the world of the occult and rituals that he will never be able to escape with his life.**Spoiler Alert**
Concept Media is one of the few indie production companies that has style. Their films are always smoothly edited, polished, and appear bigger than they are. I knew The Lamb would be no exception. I was also told that The Lamb would be a different kind of film than what I had been accustomed to with CM.
The acting in this one is great which is typical of a CM flick. Payton Krebs is a beautiful and talented young woman who was great as the unstable young woman that has fallen victim to a dangerous cult. This is the second film I have seen her in and I can’t wait to see her in more (did that sound creep?). Scott Gillespie once again shows why Burkett continues to cast him in his films. He is a powerful actor and always delivers his lines with intensity.
The story for this one is not something new to horror but that doesn’t make it any less entertaining. The Lamb slowly drags out the story while only hinting at the cult angle until the very end. This made the film fun and suspenseful.
Finally, this short does have an on screen kill but it is nothing that stands out or delivers the gore. The film made me think it was going to be full of fun kills in the name of religion but it did not. The one kill we do get is very well done and shows some decent practical effects. Overall, The Lamb is one short that packs a punch. The short has some great atmosphere and one hell of an ending. We need more films like this in the indie horror scene.
