Posted February 10th, 2008 by Jamie Lisk

• Straight to Video
• Director: Kristofer Velasquez
• Written by: Kristofer Velasquez
• Running Time: 23 minutes
• Language: English
• MPAA Rating: UNRATED
• Cast: Ken Barnhart, Amy Cull, Leon DeWyze, Kathy Swiercz, Jessica Marra , Chad McGavock

Jumping back into the ring after his dream project, “Circling the Drain”, failed to gain wings, Kristofer Velasquez, a veritable cinematic everyman, comes up swinging with this bleak 23-minute foray into the zombie-horror genre -- a foray that will surely knock your socks off.

 

 

Three characters; a femme fatale, Jesse, a nebbish egocentric, Greg, and a dominant uber-rebel, Eric, turn a claustrophobic camper into a Darwinistic battleground as egos and a need for survival slam headlong in a struggle of wills -- while outside, the world as they knew it, has become a grim, post-apocalyptic Tiergarten acquiescing to the impulses of the ravenous walking dead. If Velasquez is a dreamer, then judging from this film, he dreams in noir.

 

 

Picking off zombies perched atop his camper helps Eric (Ken Barnhart) to relax. One night, while indulging in his particularly gruesome pastime, two human drifters saunter into his crosshairs. Eric draws down on them anyway because, well, they‘re on his turf. This couple, neat and well dressed, seem harvested from some upper social class, a fact that seems to anger Eric even more. However, after quietly weighing the advantages of having some company, among other less-philanthropic things, Eric eventually relents -- allowing them to come inside his humble motor home for the night.

 

 

Now mind you, Eric is no saint, not even close. If his hobby wasn’t enough of a clue, we quickly realize that our boy Eric is a borderline sociopath, ultra-military survivalist who looks like a reject from a Hitler Youth Rally. Punked out, with a shaved head, and a nasty snarl, he makes it clear that he’s nobody’s friend. His two passengers observe him with a sense of bewilderment – although, they each have a secret of their own. Obscured beneath their outward sheen, lurks something much darker and more menacing than anything the outwardly hostile Eric could ever project. Jesse (Kathy Swiercz) seems culled from the old film noir femme fatale; quiet and duplicitous in nature, this raven haired beauty navigates and manipulates her male counterparts with the greatest of ease, always swaying any situation to her advantage. Her boyfriend, Greg (Leon DeWyze) is a pseudo-intellectual, egocentric nerd, constantly gearing himself up for the moment that he can break away from it all -- away from the zombies, Eric and, most importantly, his girlfriend.

 

 

These three characters seem written to reflect Velasquez’s own particular cynicism towards people and life itself. A human triangle, over-exaggerated examples of a selfish, parsimonious era, sure to raise the ire of those viewers who crave characters that are at least, thinly, likeable. For sure, you won’t find that here.

 

 

Anyways, the night grows long for the trio, who find that cramped quarters does not a friendly environment make. The atmosphere inside the motor home is rife with uncertainty and paranoia and before the credits role, there’s a double-cross, a murder, and a shocking revelation. There’s also the zombies, lots of them, who figure into the film’s ending in a very surprising and gruesome way that harkens back to the watermark of zombie films -- George Romero’s “Night of the Living Dead”.

 

 

Kristofer Velasquez proves himself an adept filmmaker, with a real knowledge of the genre. He’s also quite versatile, having worn all the hats on this production -- from writing, producing, directing, and doing camera work, he deserves a multitude of credit. This is a fantastic film, considering. Shot in black and white, Velasquez, in a genius move, allows the lighting to become a forth character. The shadows and light become a force for helping to establish mood, for making a zombie seem that much more ominous, or, simply, helping to magnify the danger of the unknown - the danger that might be lurking out in the darkness just inches away from the false safety of the camper. This manipulation of atmosphere and lighting also gives way to a moment of cinematic greatness. An unsophisticated premise explodes into one of the most intense moments in the film as Greg is forced to go outside, into the black night, to fill up the camper with gas. You’ll surely be on the edge of your seat as I know I was.

 

 

The acting here by first-timers Ken Barnhart, Leon DeWyze and Kathy Swiercz is exceptional. Barnhart, who comes off as rigid in the beginning, does the best job, I feel, in conveying his character‘s many dimensions. On the surface, he projects cold and barren, but beneath, there seems to be some genuine humanity -- a lost, lonely, vanquished soul living off the land. Of course, that is undone in the film’s final moments with a particularly chilling revelation, a revelation that adds just another facet to his complex character. Excellent.

 

 

The “Deadscapes Episode 1: Broken Road” DVD also comes with a behind-the-scenes featurette that details the difficulties that befell the production, namely a major falling out between star Ken Barnhart and director Kristofer Velasquez. The film’s ending, which was eventually dictated by Barnhart’s refusal to film some key final scenes, plays out much differently in a screenplay comparison. This 20 minute piece also goes a long way in showing how dedicated to his craft Velasquez is. Judging from the few times he actually smiled, maybe too dedicated. Definitely worth a visit though. Now, if we could only get Velasquez to produce a couple more episodes and turn this into a feature.