Director – Mercedes (Evul Twinz, My Night Job)
Starring – Mercedes, Jim Schumacher (Hellfire!, Clownsploitation), and Tina Alper (Rose and Viktor: No Mercy!)
Release Date – 2018
Rating – 3.5/5
A couple weeks ago I was browsing indie horror releases on Amazon when I came across several interesting titles that caught my eye. Some were no budget zombie flicks while others were slashers that looked right up my alley. However, one release that really caught my eye was a new blu from Troma.
Honor Killing is a 2018 action exploitation film from actress, director, and fetish model Mercedes. I was familiar with her other work, Rose and Viktor, so I was really curious about this one especially since it was another Troma release. I went ahead and ordered a copy and when it arrived I threw it in as soon as I could.
**Spoiler Alert** The film follows a young woman who has a love for learning but her strictly religious father does not want her to educate herself. He wants her to submit to her religion and follow the traditional norms for women. One day on her way home from the library she is raped but survives. Her rape brings great shame to her family so her father takes her out to kill her. She survives but loses an eye. Her father flees to hide stay with his brother because he was ashamed of his daughter’s rape. This sends her on a ruthless quest to find him and kill him. **Spoiler Alert**
My previous experience with Mercedes was with her film Rose and Viktor. I follow her on social media so I know of the other work that she is known for but her film experience with me is very short lived. I didn’t know what to expect from Honor Killing but the artwork was really giving off Rose and Viktor vibes. Both are similar but Honor Killing does have a message.
The acting in this one is very inconsistent but not enough to take away from the film. Mercedes not only takes over directing but she carries the film as well. Her performance has it’s own ups and downs. Some of the scenes are fantastic while others are very underwhelming. I couldn’t imagine starring in an exploitation film like this and directing it. The supporting cast is solid with some delivering a little better performances than others. We see Rose and Viktor’s Jim Schumacher returning as Viktor which is fun but a short lived cameo.
The story for this one could serve as a prequel to Rose and Viktor but does stand well on it’s own as well. What we have is a Muslim centered story that toes the line between Thriller: They Call Her One Eye and Rose and Viktor. The honor killing leading her on a bloody path to her father is very similar to Thriller but having a woman seek out Viktor to train to kill people is very much Rose and Viktor inspired. I really liked how the story was centered around honor killings with the exploitation approach. It was really fun and I enjoyed it a lot.
Finally, the film has some pretty bloody and fun kills but they don’t really stand out or are that memorable. The film uses visual effects with minimal practical effects. The kills work for the film but they will not stick with you after you watch it. Overall, Honor Killing drags it’s feet at times but I really enjoyed the story and how Mercedes approaches it. It’s something different and very well done. I highly recommend this one.
