Director – Daniel Armstrong (SheBorg, From Parts Unknown)
Starring – Daisy Masterman (SheBorg, MurderDrome), Sean McIntyre (The Legend of Ben Hall, Sacrifice), and Emma-Louise Wilson (Nova Star, From Parts Unknown)
Release Date – 2017
Rating – 3.5/5
Tagline – “It wants your soul”
Over the years I’ve reviewed a few of the Daniel Armstrong releases. They are always entertaining and give viewers something different than the typical trends that we often see with indie horror. A few years back he released the poster for his newest film Tarnation. The poster was designed by The Dude Designs and it really caught my attention. Then, seemingly over night, I didn’t hear anything else about it.
Skip forward a few years and Wild Eye Releasing sends over a few movies for me to review and their film Creature Cabin catches my eye. The artwork put me in mind of Cabin in the Wood which just happens to be one of my all time favorite horror flicks. When I tossed it in I was pleasantly surprised to see if was Armstrong’s Tarnation rebranded. Thanks Wild Eye for sending this one over!
**Spoiler Alert** The film follows newly single and unemployed Oscar (Masterman) who decides to go with her friend and fiance to a cabin deep in the woods. However, this will not be a relaxing trip away from home because something sinister has awakened in the woods and can possess all her friends. She is, in fact, the chosen one and the only one capable of stopping the evil.**Spoiler Alert**
Armstrong is a filmmaker that I strongly believe could create something truly unforgettable if he was granted a bigger budget. He is able to craft some seriously fun films with relatively smaller budgets. Tarnation is probably my favorite film by him by far. I loved the setting and scenery. The scenes looked fantastic and really paid tribute to the classic Evil Dead films.
The acting in this one is great. I really loved the characters and how they intertwined with the story. The film did not have any unneeded characters and the character really had fun with their roles. Their personalities and interactions were funny while moving the story along.
The story for this one is Evil Dead meets CarousHELL. It has a great deal of humor mixed with a similar story found in Evil Dead and Evil Dead II. We don’t get a lot of original material but the characters’ interactions and dialogue makes it fun.
Finally, the film has plenty of blood and gore. The practical effects are great but the visuals are a little rough. I really loved the practical effect and how they were incorporated into the scenes. Overall, Creature Cabin aka Tarnation, is a highly entertaining horror comedy that fans of films like Evil Dead and Tucker and Dale will truly appreciate it. The budget does render it in certain aspects but the film prevails to come out as an entertaining slice of indie cinema. Check it out.
