Movie Review: Shockheaded - Page 3

I can see how it's part of the subtle, unspoken debt owed by Shockheaded to Sam Peckinpah's Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia (a debt that, judging from the writeups around the Internet, I seem to be alone in spotting). But I don't think the third act of Garcia works as well as what precedes it, either. Too often, killing everyone seems like the last resort of a man who's painted himself into a narrative corner.

Furthermore, the film's answer to one of its central mysteries - the identity of the face behind the blank white mask - is a bit simplistic; I would have rather seen no answer at all. I grant that it's not a concrete answer (by the time the scene in question rolls around, we've clearly left any plane of reality), but it feels too easy. There is, however, the poetic last shot as compensation, so it's a wash.

Aside from that, there are a couple elements from the usual litany of shortcomings associated with no-budget moviemaking that manifest here; chief among these is the deficiencies in acting. Thornett is fun, and Debbie Rochon, who plays the missing girl, can always be counted on to class up a B-movie, but the rest of the actors aren't too keen. Wauer in particular stays a bit too stoic for much of the film, which translates as disinterest.

These are mere quibbles, though, and anyone who watches homegrown cinema with regularity has to make peace with the fact the acting is likely going to be uneven. Overall, Shockheaded shows Eric Thornett has a lot to offer the film world. It's not groundbreaking, but it's quite accomplished when compared to its zero-budget bretheren. And it's entertaining to boot.

Article Author: Steve Carlson

Steve Carlson, the proprietor of The Ongoing Cinematic Education of... since 2002, neither conducts electricity nor talks to reptiles. However, he knows someone who does both.

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