The Dividing Hour VHS

Actually more like an hour and a half

This independent feature is a little bit Reservoir Dogs, a little bit Carnival of Souls, and a little bit o’ soul thrown in.

Four bickering slackers get together to rob a bank, then head for Canada. On the way, they have an accident with the getaway car and end up seeking help at an old farmhouse. But there’s something strange about the natives, something stranger lurking in the woods, and something really strange about the refrigerator.

Like Ed Wood, Jose Mojica Marins and Orson Welles before him, Mike Prosser writes, directs, produces and turns in a compelling performance as the leader of the gang of four. He even shaves his beard and cuts his hair on camera!

It has next to no budget, but it doesn’t look that way, thanks mostly to Prosser’s and DP Jeff Yarnall’s creative hands and the technical know-how that makes cheap video look quite a bit better. There’s also some very effective and imaginative special effects thrown in. The relatively simple plot helps keep costs in check – just like so many successful first features set in remote houses and cabins (Night of the Living Dead, Blair Witch Project, Evil Dead. The entire cast turns in credible performances, and it has the feel of a professional project all the way through.

Whereas a few years ago, makers of independent low budget horror films were more concerned with finding females willing to wear nothing but blood in front of a camcorder, it’s nice to see a trend toward something more satisfying to horror fans everywhere.

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