DON’T KILL IT

(director: Mike Mendez; screenwriters: Robert Olsen/Dan Berk; cinematographer: Jan-Michael Losada; editor: Mike Mendez; music: Juliette and Sean Bevan; cast: Dolph Lundgren (Jebediah Woodley), Kristina Klebe (Agent Evelyn Pierce), James Chalke (Pastor Erikson), Aaron McPherson (Emmett), Miles Doleac (Deacon Shepard), Tony Bentley (Chief Dunham), Michael Aaron Milligan (Frank), Billy Slaughter (Agent Jackson); Runtime: 83; MPAA Rating: NR; producers: Robert Yocum/Michael Thomas Slifkin; Archstone Distribution; 2016)

“A good example of an ’80s horror film that I immensely enjoyed, even if acknowledging it as a trivial low-budget B film with an absurd plot.”

Reviewed by Dennis Schwartz

A gore-fest comedy horror pic spoof with enough matching laughs for the mounting large body count. Mike Mendez (“Big Ass Spider!”/”The Last Heist”) is director-editor, who competently executes the film and captures the right blend of laughs and chills needed for such a mixed genre pic. The clever but flawed supernatural script (clunky conclusion) by Dan Berk and Robert Olsen has a lot going for it to make it a cult classic.

The colorful demon hunter Dolph Lundgren (going against type as someone chatty, gives an inspiring performance) is hired by the small town of Chickory Creek, Mississippi, to track down an ancient body-hopping demon, accidentally released from a metal box by a hunter in the woods. The demon’s m.o is to take the body of his latest vic, as it goes on a killing spree. When Dolph tries to explain his mission to the straight-laced FBI investigator Kristina Klebe, assigned to the case, and to the devoted black preacher (James Chalke), they look at him as if he’s crazy. But the stymied agent relents when realizing she needs his help.

It’s a good example of an ’80s horror film that I immensely enjoyed, even if acknowledging it as a trivial low-budget B film with an absurd plot.

REVIEWED ON 10/17/2018 GRADE: B   https://dennisschwartzreviews.com/