What would you get if you mated Tobe Hooper with Rob Zombie and then stole their money? Alan Rowe Kelly, of course. What? You don't know who Alan Rowe Kelly is? Well, I don't blame you; before watching The Blood Shed I'd never heard of him either.
Apparently, according to the DVD case, he is a "cult horror maven." I'm not so sure about that, but there is definitely a manic energy to this micro-budget flick that crosses Leatherface's family from The Texas Chainsaw Massacre and the Firefly clan from House of 1000 Corpses. There is no way that I could possibly call this movie good, but there is something about it that makes it worth spending some time with, even if it is difficult to discover.
When you approach the prospect of watching The Blood Shed, you have to prepare yourself for one thing above all others. You have to realize that this is a very low budget creation. It was shot on digital video and the look is distinctly different from film. Everything about the film shows that they had no money to create anything. That said, they did a great job with what they had.
The story centers on the Bullion family, a twisted bunch of cannibalistic in-breds that live in an old house in the middle of the forest. As the movie begins, we really don't know that, nor do we have any idea what to expect. My recommendation? Don't expect much as the story really does not even begin to scratch the demented surface of the Bullion clan.
Where the movie succeeds is in the wild, wacky, and weird characterizations and in the set design. Both of these elements belie the fact that there was little money involved. No, you will never mistake this for an Oscar winner, or even a middling entry in the horror/comedy genre, but it does make for an intriguing watch.
Let's see if I can get the story straight. Early on it is implied the Bullion family is responsible for a string of child disappearances, their fates tied to the so-called blood shed of the title. However, before we can get there, we must get acquainted with the family. The first member we meet is the daughter, Beeftina (played by writer/director Alan Rowe Kelly). She... um, he... aah, whatever... is first spied skipping down the road dragging her pet roadkill, Flapjack, behind her. As she goes along her merry way she is picked on by some of the local kids. One even follows her into the woods. Now, you have to know that is going to be a mistake. This boy becomes the latest victim of the family.
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