LLAMAGEDDON (2015)

Llamageddon (2015)
Directed by: Howie Dewin

Starring: Dany Ambassa, Gooch Jesco III, James Earl Cox III, Louie The Llama, Pinki Brainweis

LLAMAGEDDON (2015)
Directed by Howie Dewin

After the sudden death of their grandparents, Melissa and Floyd move into their house to prepare it in order to be put on the market for it to be sold. However, Melissa spies the opportunity to throw a house party in the empty property and invites all her friends down against Floyd’s wishes. With a house full of teens drinking, smoking week and copulating, the only thing that could ruin their fun is the killer space llama lurking outside the property with a taste for obliteration and with a yearning to spawn the future species. Will the teens make it out alive?

If you’re an avid reader of this site, you should know by now that I love independently-made creature features that boast a curiously amusing title teasing the treasures that lay within. Basically, if it has a punny title or a fun element (Killer Sofa, Ghost Shark), then I am there like a flash. Except this time, I hadn’t realised that the tremendously titled LLAMAGEDDON, which I’d been following on Twitter for the last few years, was available on Amazon Prime to watch for free! As soon as I realised this, I cancelled all of my plans and eagerly pressed play on the much-anticipated llama horror spoof.

The film opens with a terrific animation of an alien llama species on a distant planet, all marching along and each entering a spacecraft (llama trailer with aeroplane wings) which take flight and blast off into space. The particular llama we’re following ends up thrown off course and crash lands on planet Earth, specifically into a farmer’s field, where it spies the opportunity to wreak havoc. Whilst its first kill comes pretty quickly, llama takes a bit of a backseat as LLAMAGEDDON transforms into your typical teen house party movie with a bunch of boys and girls getting drunk, stoned and frisky. After having firmly established this part of the movie, the human and space llama collide and this is truly when the explosive, blood-splattering fun begins!

LLAMAGEDDON is everything I hoped it would be and so much more. With a llama that shoots lasers out of its eyes and causes its victim to explode, what is there not to love?! Starring a very real Louie the Llama as the deviant alien llama of destruction, the film’s antagonist will happily trample, chomp, spit and blow up any human who crosses its path – its glowing red eyes the only tell-tale sign as to its malevolence.

The film doesn’t take itself seriously and likes to joke around with its content at all times. One scene that had me giggling was the discovery of the alien spaceship. The llama’s unassuming mode of transport perplexes ‘experts’ as they admit it’s technology well beyond their years and comprehension despite it being a trailer with wings attached and a foil keypad inside. We then have the humorous take of Floyd and Melissa’s parents being a similar age to the supposed grandparents of the film, which in itself made me chortle. In llama-land, anything goes!

It’s very rare that LLAMAGEDDON ever comes up for air. It keeps the laughs coming, especially throughout the house party with the characters beautifully sending up the whole typical teenage/college student stereotypes and their exploits. The cast seem to be having a whale of a time and throw themselves fully into the idea of a killer space llama on the loose, with one character in particularly embracing a transformation spoof of An American Werewolf in London. There’s also a character named Dan who must hold the record for most costume changes in one “night”.

LLAMAGEDDON is too brilliant to be put into words. The comedy-laden script, the awesome opening metal riff complimenting the terrific llama animation (animated scenes also make an appearance later on in the film), and closing Slim Shady-esque rap song over the credits wrote specifically for the film… this is entertainment at its best. And to top it all off, it stars a real life llama. You couldn’t ask for more.

Whatever you had planned to watch this weekend, postpone it and watch LLAMAGEDDON instead. You’ll thank me later. And if you’re left wanting more after the credits roll (of course you will!), then you’ll be pleased to know that the filmmakers have a proposed sequel in the works, entitled Alpacalypse.

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