- Directed by: Joe Hollow
- Written by: Joe Hollow
- Stars: Debbie Rochon, Joe Hollow, August Kyss
- Run Time: 1 Hour, 28 Minutes
- Trailer:
Spoiler-Free Judgment Zone
A couple’s struggles are made more complicated by supernatural forces. This reminded us both of a take on Hellraiser, with more elements of strange romance and relationship complications. There’s some decent work being done here, but this one didn’t really connect with either of us
Spoilery Synopsis
We watch a man in a bondage suit watching weird torture porn on a small TV as we get flashes of manga pages. “There will be no becoming,” warns a voice as the man begs. The man is beheaded and his body burns. Elsewhere, a woman wakes up. Was that a dream?
We hear about “The Death Dealer” who searches for lost souls and leads a legion of demons. In return for facing your fears and embracing them, you survive. Credits roll.
Jack and Sienna Russo go to the house by the lake, and it’s a very cold winter’s day. They’re having some marital problems. We cut to Vivienne, who’s talking to her mother on the phone; she’s made some bad life choices.
Jack wants to be a writer, but he has no inspiration. Sienna dresses in a bondage suit to get him in the mood. His publisher wants two pages by Monday, or he’s fired. Someone sends him a videotape and a note labeled, “Inspiration.”
We cut to Vivienne, who gets all made up in a nice dress and then shoots herself in the head.
Jack plays the tape. It’s a video of a leather-clad man in a mask tormenting a woman in a white mask. The man then slaps the woman several times
Vivienne wakes up and a muscular man in a mask appears from a portal. “Your becoming can be so beautiful. Become my Jezebel,” says the deep voice we heard in the pre-credit sequence. She needs to embrace her fears and “become” before she runs out of time.
Sienna talks to Jack about the strange man she’s been dreaming about; we know who he is. The Death Dealer’s weird, screechy-voiced assistant, Livinia, tortures a man who wants more time.
Jack continues to watch the depraved videotape until Sierra comes in to talk about what she did. She had an affair with Jack’s best friend. Soon after she finds herself locked in a room with a magical portal. She soon meets Livinia, who introduces her to the Death Dealer. The Death Dealer strangles her, and she wakes up back in her own bed.
We get a montage that shows us that Sienna tried to kill herself at one point. Jack watches the video, and a lot of the “story” seems to reflect his own life and cheating wife. Jack thinks his publisher, Callie, sent it to him for inspiration.
Jack goes to the bar, angry, and runs into Vivienne there, who seduces him. When he goes home, Sienna wants them to do Ecstasy. The Death Dealer soon shows up and smacks Jack before tying him up. It’s a bad trip.
Mike the bartender explains a bunch of stuff; he knows about Jack and Vivienne. On Jack’s video, the tortured girl cuts off the Death Dealer’s penis and then shoots him in the head– and then herself. Jack starts to think Sienna had something to do with the tape.
Sienna comes in, and she admits she sent the tape. Was everything on the tape real? She says it’s more about forgiveness; anyone can forgive. “You hurt me too. That’s why I had to kill Vivienne.” She wants him to use all this in his novel. Then she vanishes.
Livinia laughs and tortures Sienna, who actually killed herself a while back. All of this was her embracing her fear of a life without Jack. She has become. Jack, on the other hand, does write his book.
Brian’s Commentary
It’s a sort of low-budget riff on “Hellraiser” without all the violence and special effects.
The music selections in this film are just horrible. Did the filmmaker think we’d want to hear that droning, moaning, mush?
It was written, directed, produced, and starred Joe Hollow. His acting isn’t terrible here, but his directing leaves a bit to be desired. It’s really slow, the editing and acting feel a little off, and a lot of the scenes just feel like an excuse for women to wear bondage gear.
The twist at the end didn’t really save this one for me.
Kevin’s Commentary
The costuming and effects did the job for the most part. The story dragged a bit, but got the job done in the end with an interesting wrap up. I think it might have been a stronger film with the writing/directing/producing/starring delegated more instead of all being one person.