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[Review] ‘Killers’ Is This Generation’s ‘Videodrome’

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Admit it. One late night, while you were drearily scrolling through articles online, you came across an ad for a dirty video, and you clicked on it. Guilt might have washed over you, but the adrenaline from breaking some kind of moral code kept your eyes glued to the screen, taking comfort in the fact that no one would ever witness your sins. It may feel slightly wrong, but this behavior is not that uncommon. In a society where revealing celebrity photos are often leaked online, and nearly every craving can be coaxed within seconds without even having to leave your home, who hasn’t peeked at something naughty online that they shouldn’t have? Inquisitiveness is part of what makes us human, but if we allow our Id too much control over our actions, and give into our every whim and desire, our humanity is what we wind up sacrificing. In its attempt to explore the depths of our morbid curiosity and society’s instant gratification via the internet, Killers becomes the Videodrome of its generation.

Have you ever thought about killing someone? Nomura suggests that it’s something everyone ought to consider. He’s been taking lives and hiding the evidence ever since he was nine years old, starting with his very own family. First he finds the girls, then he films himself torturing and killing them (in a terrifyingly awesome mask), and then cleans up the mess and posts the video online under an anonymous account. Nomura is just a lone wolf terrorizing Japan, but his debauchery managed the catch the eyes of millions of people, including Indonesian journalist Bayu all the way over in Jakarta. Bayu thinks of himself as a good man, just trying to hold white collar criminals to the same standards as the rest of their peers, and punish men like Dharma for their crimes. But when Bayu is randomly attacked by two barbarous thieves and is forced to defend himself, he feels the immense power of playing god, and and falls prey to a lethal spell. As he glides his camera phone over the robbers’ lifeless bodies, Bayu feels calamity wash over him like a mother’s lullaby, and he finds joy in the act he once feared. As soon as Bayu posts the video online, Nomura reaches out to him, and encourages his murderous rampage. One man in Japan, and one in Indonesia, the two men set out on their deadly paths, one born into an emotionless sociopathic world, and the other sinking a little further down a self-destructive rabbit hole each day.

Told entirely from the villains’ POV, this film provides an excellent analysis of the makings of a serial killer though the old debate of nature vs. nurture. Nomura represents nature, since he’s been murdering people from the age of nine, and in all likelihood, long before that. He feels no remorse, and displays no emotions, only exhibiting calm power over his victims and taking delight in their brutal deaths. A true sociopath, Nomura works hard to fit in and appear normal amongst his peers, making a strong case for the argument that murderers are simply born with an innate need to kill. Bayu on the other hand starts out like most people, a simple man who’s made some mistakes and is currently paying for them. As much as he loves his daughter and her mother, the responsibility of a family frightened him, so he walked away, and has been trying to make things right ever since. However, after his name as a writer is tarnished by Dharma, the man he seeks to imprison, the weight of his family and his failure in his work weigh heavy on him, and the men who rob him are just a tipping point into his journey of madness. Therefore, one could argue that murderers are made when good men are forced to make bad decisions in traumatic events. Both sides of the argument are equally supported, and as disturbing as the film is, the ride is surprisingly quite engaging.

Like Cronenberg’s Videodrome, Killers points out how our society is never satisfied with our means of entertainment. Whereas Videodrome was a commentary on video nasties of the 1980s, Killers is an updated version, capturing the underbelly of the internet through handheld cameras, cellphones, and laptops. Nowadays, a simple story about a boy and a girl falling in love isn’t gonna cut it. We want gun fights, we want nudity, and we want it now. We won’t be happy until we’ve drawn blood. As we hungrily seek the next thrill, the only logical next step to titilate our senses is to raise the stakes and hurt somebody. In Killers, we, as the audience, sit safe behind a screen and watch the violence unfold, becoming just another pair of eyes in addition to the many that watch Nomura commit his wicked deeds, just as Bayu did before he joined in on the action. Killers is not just a brilliant look at the overstimulation and desensitization of humanity, it actually manages to wrangle in their viewers as participants in this sick and twisted game. The sadistic acts are as tranquil and artistic as they are barbaric, making it hard to look away. Through this, the viewers understand first hand the slippery slope that is the journey from passive watching to active involvement.

With layered, oddly relatable antiheroes and utterly astounding performances from Kazuki Kitamura and Oka Antara, Killers is an extremely impressive addition to the Mo Brothers’ catalogue. The best parts of the film are the interactions between Bayu and Nomura, and it would have been nice to see more of Nomura taking Bayu under his wing and training him as his understudy. With a little tweaking and fine tuning to make a tighter story, this film would be nearly perfect. However, despite its small faults here and there, Killers is wildly entertaining and a fascinating inquiry into the mind of people who take pleasure in extinguishing life. The Mo Brothers are oozing with potential, and with a little recognition and a bigger budget, one day, they will undoubtedly make a masterpiece.

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‘Herencia Diabólica’ – 1993’s “Mexican Child’s Play” Finally Has a Blu-ray Release [Review]

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Did you know that there is a Child’s Play-inspired film from Mexico? If you didn’t, you can thank Vinegar Syndrome’s new label Degausser Video for making 1993’s Herencia Diabólica available for the masses to watch. Or at least for the VS hardcore fanbase, Chucky completists and anyone else who needs something like this in their lives.

Director Alfredo Salazar, known for his writing connection to the 70s Santo film series, also serves as the writer here to bring us a film seemingly inspired from the Child’s Play franchise. While it has been recently labeled as the “Mexican Child’s Play” (there’s a special feature on the disc with that very title), the killer doll concept is where the comparison should start and end. Despite having some seeds planted by that franchise, Salazar delivers a story that blossoms into something unique.

Tony (Roberto Guinar) receives a letter informing him that his aunt has died, and he has inherited her estate in Mexico. He quits his job and uproots his life in New York with his wife Annie (Holda Ramírez) to relocate south of the border and move into his new crib. Now I know what you’re thinking, what person just quits their job and drags their wife to another country without having reliable monetary income? Tony does, everyone, Tony does.

And what’s the first thing they do once they arrive in Mexico and check out the estate? They hit the bedroom, naturally. We are treated to a sex scene with an erotica song that feels like a knockoff of “Sadness” by Enigma (remember them?). Sounds fun and all, but the scene takes place completely in the dark and we see absolutely nothing. Maybe that’s why the sexy-time tune was pumping, so we could know what was exactly going down.

While Tony goes on a job interview, Annie explores the estate’s grounds in a tedious chore to experience, going room by room, plodding along. But it does lead us to her discovery of our antagonist—the evil clown doll, Payasito! Of all the things in the house, she decides to bring this monstrosity down to show Tony when he gets home. What an exciting way to celebrate (sic)! Then out of nowhere, she spouts off some exposition about rumors that Tony’s aunt dabbled in the dark arts and now we know where our title Diabolical Inheritance (the English translation for Herencia Diabólica) originates. For those of you who keep score for things like that.

Before proceeding with this review, you really need to visualize what Payasito looks like to truly embrace the rest of the film’s shenanigans. While Chucky resembles a cute ginger child, Payasito resembles a small clown that is much larger in stature than Chucky. That’s because Payasito is performed by an actor (Margarito Esparaza) in clown cosplay whenever he’s on the move (like Mannequin 2), and makes some really horrible facial expressions. Chucky dresses in “Good Guys” overalls and a striped shirt, but Payasito wears a new wave Santa hat while sporting a Sgt. Pepper jacket and Peter Pan tights. As you can now tell, he is quite beautiful.

Back to our story, Payasito begins to spook Annie cerebrally until she becomes unnerved to the point of having a complete mental break down, making her easy prey to eliminate. She dies but the unborn child survives, with Tony believing that her death was caused by her mental instability. Fast forward some years later and the couple’s surviving spawn has grown into child Roy (Alan Fernando), who at this point has already bonded with Payasito to help him over the loss of his mother. Dun-dun-duuunnn!

Meanwhile wealthy Tony remains single, still grieving his late wife, until his blonde assistant Doris encourages him to move on with his life and start seeing other people. And by other people, she naturally means herself. As the old Kanye West song lyric goes, “I ain’t saying she’s a gold digger…”, and it seems that she might be until we learn more about her character. Doris is played by the stunning Lorena Hererra who has an extremely extensive resume in Mexico, and she carries most of the film quite well during the feature’s second half. The singer and former Playboy centerfold for their Mexico edition is by far the most recognizable face in the cast.

Doris and Tony do indeed hookup and she moves into La casa de Herencia, where she does her best to impress Roy and lessen his obsession with the doll. There is a scene where they go to a nearby park without Payasito that is filled with famous fairytale figures, such as Pinocchio, Cinderella and King Kong! What, you didn’t know King Kong is a fairytale? Me neither. But Roy continues to be obsessed with Payasito after their trip, much to Doris’ chagrin.

Her actions to separate him from Roy gets Payasito angry, setting up the film’s most memorable scene. We already know that Payasito is a devil doll like Chucky, but now we learn he also has the power to invade people’s dreams like Freddy Krueger! Does Payasito enter the dream world and concoct a creative way to kill Doris in her sleep? No, he harnesses his power to sexually assault her instead. Yes that actually happens. After she awakens, Doris grabs the doll and tosses him into a lake, only to find him waiting for her by the time she gets back to the house. So now we know he also maintains the ability to “transport” like Jason Voorhees too. This doll is the total package!

More insanity happens before we close out the film with the longest victim chase sequence ever. It makes the previously mentioned painful house search scene seem like an eyeblink. It feels like it’s the film’s entire third act, filled with so much padding that you could soundproof an entire three-story house.

So how’s the transfer? Considering it was created using a mix of VHS and film source elements from 1993, they did one heck of a job! The work they put into it is especially noticeable in the dream invasion sequence, with the pulsing multi-colored psychedelic visuals. Super trippy stuff. Even the film’s score provides a pretty chill vibe, during the times when Payasito isn’t on the prowl.

If anything you read has piqued your interest in the very least, you should give it a shot. But if not, it is best to leave this doll on the shelf.

Herencia Diabólica is now available to purchase at VinegarSyndrome.com.

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