The Unforgiving (2010)

The Unforgiving (2010)
Directed by: Alastair Orr
Written by: Alastair Orr
Starring: Claire Opperman, Craig Hawks, Ryan Macquet

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YdaLHBPiAiA[/youtube]

The Unforgiving (2010)

(18) Running time: 75 minutes

Director: Alastair Orr

Writer: Alastair Orr

Starring: Ryan Macquet, Craig Hawks, Claire Opperman

Reviewed by: Matt Wavish, official HCF critic

Based on true events, debut filmmaker Alastair Orr has come along to show just how good you can make a vicious little tale with barely any budget at all. This South African made film may not be the very best the horror and cult genre has to offer this year, but it can hold its head up high as being a damned impressive one. The story focuses on two survivors of a serial killer, both interrogated by police, and both recounting their version of the events that happened while kidnapped by the vile killer. The Unforgiving is one half torture porn and one half brain teasing thriller which will require your full attention if you are to be rewarded during the films outcome.

A lot of care has gone into the film, and while the actors appear to struggle during certain scenes, this can be forgiven considering we are dealing with virtual unknowns. Saying that though, at times the actors shine and do a fantastic job, and the director has really used the low budget look and feel to his advantage and made the whole thing look slightly arty. The victims are captured and chained up in an old ruin in the country, a former building which has plenty of rocks, broken glass and other rubbish which can be used as weapons or as a way out. Both a guy and a girl have been captured, not knowing of the others existence and we spend half the film in the interrogation room and the other half with the victims as they try to figure out what they are doing here and who has captured them. The country setting and view of ‘freedom’ outside of the victim’s chains is a chilling stroke of ‘so close and yet so far’ from escape and adds a real unsettling aspect to what is happening.

There is violence, some of it a little hard to stomach, like the guy pulling a shard of glass out of his foot in extreme close up. The blood is well produced and looks very realistic in places, and while the trailer promised all out gore, you rarely see it actually happen, you see the after effects. When there is violence, like a fight between two guys, the camera jumps in and gets a little too involved and what you see on screen is a complete mess and it is very hard to make out exactly what is happening, but I believe the director was looking for a sense of chaos with this approach, of someone pushed to their limits and so it works on that level. With its short running time nothing ever feels truly dragged out or unnecessary and the film, skipping from past to present, flows quite nicely. The killer, all dressed up in a gas mask, is quite chilling too and tough and not afraid to take on the victims in a punch up.

It is difficult to say too much about the plot as there really is a sting in the tale come the end, and it is actually a little confusing, but for the most part The Unforgiving is a great watch if you can handle the extreme low budget. For a debut film, it is astonishing, and the name Alastair Orr is definitely a name to watch in the future. Give The Unforgiving a go, you just might like it.

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