DESTROY ALL NEIGHBORS
(director: Josh Forbes; screenwriters: Jared Logan, Charles A. Pieper, Mike Benner; cinematographer: Will Stone; editor: Mark Friedman; music: Russell Sanzgiri, Brett Morris; cast: Alex Winter (Vlad), Kiran Deol (Emily), Randee Heller (Eleanor Prescott), Thomas Lennon (Scotty), Jonah Ray Rodrigues (William Brown), Jon Daly (Swig); Runtime: 85; MPAA Rating: NR; producers: Russell Sanzgiri, Alex Winter, Jonah Ray; Shudder; 2024)
“Goofy mix of horror and black comedy.”
Reviewed by Dennis Schwartz
Josh Forbes (“Contracted Phase II”) directs this goofy mix of horror and black comedy. It’s written by Jared Logan, Charles A. Pieper, and Mike Benner.
William Brown (Jonah Ray Rodrigues) flopped as a prog rocker and now the grumpy musician works a day job as a sound engineer in an L.A. studio. He’s composing a new piece he wants his boss Scotty (Thomas Lennon) to look at. But a weirdo new tenant, Vlad (Alex Winter), moves into the apartment next to him and makes so much noise night and day he can’t finish the piece.
Vlad and William’s sweet girlfriend Emily (Kiran Deol) meet and become friends.
When William finally gets up enough nerve to confront Vlad, after being reluctant to do so because of his psychological problems, things go wrong and he accidentally kills his neighbor from hell by impaling him and severing his head. But Vlad is even worse when he returns from the dead.
It’s a bloody, witless and boring film. Though its length of only 85 minutes is reasonable, the movie still seems longer. Also the more it goes on, the sillier and more ghoulish it gets.
REVIEWED ON 1/24/2024 GRADE: C