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[Through the Cracks] Lovecraft-y Horror In ‘The Kindred’

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As hardcore horror fans, sometimes it feels like you’ve seen it all. There are no surprises left to discover, no classic slasher film waiting around the corner to thrill you and slap a childlike grin on your face. You try to feed the fix by searching through lists of “The Scariest Films You’ve Never Seen” only to come across titles like “May”, “The Descent”, and “Suspiria”. These are, of course, films that us diehards know and love all too well. That’s where I come in, dear reader. We’ll be taking a deep dive into the bowels of obscure horror from decades past and uncovering titles that might have fallen Through the Cracks”.

The Kindred (1987)

Directed by: Jeffrey Obrow and Stephen Carpenter

The Kindred is quite literally the film that started me out on my journey of trying to unearth films that had fallen “Through the Cracks.” I read about it many moons ago within the pages of Rue Morgue magazine. It sounded like a fun, goopy, creature feature that had somehow remained unchecked across my radar. That specific article came at the perfect time for me. I was very much in the throws of “so, this is adulthood?” and due to all the life drama, I was losing touch with my true passion – horror! After a quick search, I was able to secure a copy of The Kindred, and it did not disappoint in the slightest.

The film was exactly the kind of gory, low budget monster mayhem that had me falling in love with the genre to begin with. Here I was, thinking I’d seen all that classic horror had to offer, and WAM – along comes The Kindred to remind me there are hundreds of films, especially from the 80s, that I still needed to lock my peepers on. I hadn’t seen it all, and I probably never would. However, the challenge of trying to do so was exciting and enough to light the fire under my horror loving behind.

I recently hosted a screening for a group of people who had never seen the flick. It was amazing how well it played. For an indie production that was destined to live out its life on video store shelves, The Kindred still packs a punch. So much so, even some of my friends who aren’t huge genre fans had a blast with it. It’s held up exceptionally well, and I couldn’t be more jazzed by the news that Synapse Films have gotten their mitts on the negative with the intention of releasing a cleaned up Blu-ray later this year.

So, what sets this apart from all the other titles that cluttered up the horror section of your local Blockbuster? The plot feels like it’s been lifted from any number of Lovecraft tales. In fact, it’s easy to imagine the directors were inspired by Stuart Gordon’s Re-Animator and decided to tackle similar material…just without the over the top humor. There are even shades of a later Lovecraft adaptation, Dan O’Bannon’s The Resurrected. In spite of feelings of deja vu, Obrow and Carpenter keep things moving at such a spirited clip, you’d be hard-pressed to not have some fun with your viewing experience.

In the film, John is coping with the impending death of his mother, a renowned scientist. On her deathbed, she urges him to go to his childhood home, find all of her lab work, and destroy it all. Without any further explanation, she also drops this bombshell: John has a brother named Anthony! Who – or what – Anthony is, is still a mystery. So, after her passing, John hauls a group of fellow MD comrades off to his family estate, and they all get to work trying to uncover just what it is his mother seemed so afraid of. Of course, their newfound interest in the files of John’s mother flies in the face of the warnings of a dying woman, but whatevs.

Before long, the gang is duking it out with an amphibious, tentacled monstrosity with familial ties to our hero. While the plot is straight out of the B-movie Basics playbook, there are a couple of surprises sprinkled throughout to keep you on your toes. The true standout, however, are the effects work. From perfectly repulsive makeup designs inserting gills where they need never go and large-scale animatronics that certainly feel of scale with a much larger production, The Kindred is a bonafide funhouse full of splattery effects work. Based off the artistry on display here, it’s no shock that lead makeup effects artist, Matthew Mungle, went directly from this to A Nightmare on Elm Street 3 and a vast number of Hollywood productions after that.

For the directors, this wasn’t their first time at the rodeo. The duo started with the equally better-than-it-had-to-be slasher flick, The Dorm that Dripped Blood (AKA Pranks). They followed that up with a gonzo super cheapie by the name The Power before tackling this, their magnum opus. In the years since 1987, Obrow and Carpenter have gone their separate ways. Carpenter has since been writing for TV with his only directorial credit since, the much maligned and heavily post-production-butchered Soul Survivors with Eliza Dushku. Obrow continued working in the indie scene with the occasional writing or directing gig. While we may not know why the duo went their separate ways (perhaps it’ll get covered amongst the typical wealth of Synapse bonus material), it genuinely is a shame. The two directors turned out three oddball gems that are well worth rediscovering by 80’s horror fans with a desire to explore the road less traveled. The Kindred is easily the best of the bunch, and when it comes to “Through the Cracks,” it’s the one that started it all!

Editorials

‘Leprechaun Returns’ – The Charm of the Franchise’s Legacy Sequel

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leprechaun returns

The erratic Leprechaun franchise is not known for sticking with a single concept for too long. The namesake (originally played by Warwick Davis) has gone to L.A., Las Vegas, space, and the ‘hood (not once but twice). And after an eleven-year holiday since the Davis era ended, the character received a drastic makeover in a now-unmentionable reboot. The critical failure of said film would have implied it was time to pack away the green top hat and shillelagh, and say goodbye to the nefarious imp. Instead, the Leprechaun series tried its luck again.

The general consensus for the Leprechaun films was never positive, and the darker yet blander Leprechaun: Origins certainly did not sway opinions. Just because the 2014 installment took itself seriously did not mean viewers would. After all, creator Mark Jones conceived a gruesome horror-comedy back in the early nineties, and that format is what was expected of any future ventures. So as horror legacy sequels (“legacyquels”) became more common in the 2010s, Leprechaun Returns followed suit while also going back to what made the ‘93 film work. This eighth entry echoed Halloween (2018) by ignoring all the previous sequels as well as being a direct continuation of the original. Even ardent fans can surely understand the decision to wipe the slate clean, so to speak.

Leprechaun Returns “continued the [franchise’s] trend of not being consistent by deciding to be consistent.” The retconning of Steven Kostanski and Suzanne Keilly’s film was met with little to no pushback from the fandom, who had already become accustomed to seeing something new and different with every chapter. Only now the “new and different” was familiar. With the severe route of Origins a mere speck in the rearview mirror, director Kotanski implemented a “back to basics” approach that garnered better reception than Zach Lipovsky’s own undertaking. The one-two punch of preposterous humor and grisly horror was in full force again.

LEPRECHAUN

Pictured: Linden Porco as The Leprechaun in Leprechaun Returns.

With Warwick Davis sitting this film out — his own choice — there was the foremost challenge of finding his replacement. Returns found Davis’ successor in Linden Porco, who admirably filled those blood-stained, buckled shoes. And what would a legacy sequel be without a returning character? Jennifer Aniston obviously did not reprise her final girl role of Tory Redding. So, the film did the next best thing and fetched another of Lubdan’s past victims: Ozzie, the likable oaf played by Mark Holton. Returns also created an extension of Tory’s character by giving her a teenage daughter, Lila (Taylor Spreitler).

It has been twenty-five years since the events of the ‘93 film. The incident is unknown to all but its survivors. Interested in her late mother’s history there in Devil’s Lake, North Dakota, Lila transferred to the local university and pledged a sorority — really the only one on campus — whose few members now reside in Tory Redding’s old home. The farmhouse-turned-sorority-house is still a work in progress; Lila’s fellow Alpha Epsilon sisters were in the midst of renovating the place when a ghost of the past found its way into the present.

The Psycho Goreman and The Void director’s penchant for visceral special effects is noted early on as the Leprechaun tears not only into the modern age, but also through poor Ozzie’s abdomen. The portal from 1993 to 2018 is soaked with blood and guts as the Leprechaun forces his way into the story. Davis’ iconic depiction of the wee antagonist is missed, however, Linden Porco is not simply keeping the seat warm in case his predecessor ever resumes the part. His enthusiastic performance is accentuated by a rotten-looking mug that adds to his innate menace.

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Pictured: Taylor Spreitler, Pepi Sonuga, and Sai Bennett as Lila, Katie and Rose in Leprechaun Returns.

The obligatory fodder is mostly young this time around. Apart from one luckless postman and Ozzie — the premature passing of the latter character removed the chance of caring about anyone in the film — the Leprechaun’s potential prey are all college aged. Lila is this story’s token trauma kid with caregiver baggage; her mother thought “monsters were always trying to get her.” Lila’s habit of mentioning Tory’s mental health problem does not make a good first impression with the resident mean girl and apparent alcoholic of the sorority, Meredith (Emily Reid). Then there are the nicer but no less cursorily written of the Alpha Epsilon gals: eco-conscious and ex-obsessive Katie (Pepi Sonuga), and uptight overachiever Rose (Sai Bennett). Rounding out the main cast are a pair of destined-to-die bros (Oliver Llewellyn Jenkins, Ben McGregor). Lila and her peers range from disposable to plain irritating, so rooting for any one of them is next to impossible. Even so, their overstated personalities make their inevitable fates more satisfying.

Where Returns excels is its death sequences. Unlike Jones’ film, this one is not afraid of killing off members of the main cast. Lila, admittedly, wears too much plot armor, yet with her mother’s spirit looming over her and the whole story — comedian Heather McDonald put her bang-on Aniston impersonation to good use as well as provided a surprisingly emotional moment in the film — her immunity can be overlooked. Still, the other characters’ brutal demises make up for Lila’s imperviousness. The Leprechaun’s killer set-pieces also happen to demonstrate the time period, seeing as he uses solar panels and a drone in several supporting characters’ executions. A premortem selfie and the antagonist’s snarky mention of global warming additionally add to this film’s particular timestamp.

Critics were quick to say Leprechaun Returns did not break new ground. Sure, there is no one jetting off to space, or the wacky notion of Lubdan becoming a record producer. This reset, however, is still quite charming and entertaining despite its lack of risk-taking. And with yet another reboot in the works, who knows where the most wicked Leprechaun ever to exist will end up next.


Horror contemplates in great detail how young people handle inordinate situations and all of life’s unexpected challenges. While the genre forces characters of every age to face their fears, it is especially interested in how youths might fare in life-or-death scenarios.

The column Young Blood is dedicated to horror stories for and about teenagers, as well as other young folks on the brink of terror.

Leprechaun Returns movie

Pictured: Linden Porco as The Leprechaun in Leprechaun Returns.

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