Director – Adam Ahlbrandt (Cross Bearer, The Burnt House)
Starring – J.D. Brown (Smoke Pot Till You Fucking Die), Natalie Jean (Cross Bearer), and Adam Huss (Resurrection County)
Release Date – 2013
Rating – 4.5/5
Adam Ahlbrandt’s film Cross Bearer made such an impact on the horror community that you can not visit a single horror or exploitation website without seeing it in one form or another. However, the fame of one film can often shadow the success of the following films made thereafter.
Cross Bearer was such a huge hit that Ahlbrandt’s next film, The Cemetery, kinda went under the radar. I had no idea this movie was released while I was sitting around waiting to see Cross Bearer. It was not until a few months ago when I was looking around on imdb.com that I found this movie and it’s connection to Cross Bearer. I found the trailer and waited patiently until I could see both films. So once again I want to thank Adam for giving me the chance to see this film.
**Spoiler Alert**The film follows a film crew and an amateur actress as they visit a cemetery to search for something paranormal. The reason the group chose this specific cemetery is because one of the members broke in to a church and stole an old book.
Inside the book the team discover that this specific cemetery held a long, dark secret. In 1671 a settlement was built over an Indian holy ground unleashing demonic beasts that possess the men, women, and children and turned them into bloodthirsty fiends. The church tried to contain the outbreak but could not find a way to kill them. They tried to skin them alive, drain their blood, and torture but the only way to prevent them from attacking everyone was to remove their head.
Now, the faux paranormal team are camping in that very cemetery to film an episode of their paranormal investigations. One of the hotties (Jean) cuts her finger and bleeds onto the ground. The “sinners” blood unleashes those very Native American demons to wreak havoc on the film crew one by one. Turning the women into demons that feast on the men.**Spoiler Alert**
Too much success can actually be a bad thing. Cross Bearer bust the indie world up the middle like a virgin on prom night. However, because it was such an amazing movie it was plastered on almost every horror related website. Because of this I had no idea Ahlbrandt released The Cemetery which is a horrible thing.
This is easily one of the best movies I have seen in recent years. The acting is once again an amazing performance by the entire cast. In fact, the acting in this one is pretty damn good and on the same level as most big budget films. The story is really nothing special and reminded me a lot of the Fred Olen Ray’s film Scalps and the classic Evil Dead II. The Native American demons possessing those that are camping is the same plot line as Scalps which was released in 1983 and the book detailing how to rid themselves (or not) of the cursed ones is reminiscent of Evil Dead II.
Though the plot borrows heavily from films released in the past it is still an amazing film and is done in a completely different manner than both those films. Both films used humor, either intentional or unintentional, while this film is completely void of humor and hits you in the face with straight gore and horror.
Finally, the special effects and on screen deaths are utterly amazing. The special effects and gore in this one is the best I have seen in an indie film, period. Some scenes I honestly had to back track and see them all over again because the kills and gore were so great. The avid gorehound would get his fill from this one and then some. Overall, this is an amazing horror film that takes a step back from CGI and shows the world how powerful practical effects can be. I highly recommend this film.
