Based out of Quebec, Canada, the folks at Digger Films have been making low-budget movies for half a decade, working with everyone from S.V. Bell to “Death Race” star Melantha Blackthorne, and their output is generally enjoyable genre fare. Their more celebrated effort “Stories of a Gravedigger”, an anthology film released in 2005, has garnered quite a bit of praise from genre enthusiasts across the internet. Featuring three short horror stories wrapped around a central linking animated bookend, the film was really quite good, maybe a little uneven. The same can pretty much be said for their latest anthology film, curiously titled “Dead Time Stories”, not to be confused with their “Stories of a Gravedigger: Deadtime Stories” or Jeffrey Delman’s 1986 film “Deadtime Stories”. This time out there is nothing that connects the various short films, which come and go so quickly you’ll have trouble trying to remember them. Some of the shorts presented here seem to have been conceived and shot on the sly, with little thought or effort, while others are heavily detailed with some staggering visuals and wonderful acting, all of which adds up to a very herky jerky ride indeed. The film boasts at least one well-known b-movie celeb in Debbie Rochon who, judging from her very quick cameo, was probably doing this for spending money between horror film convention appearances while in Montreal. Christ, the fact that it was shot in a hotel room pretty much confirms it. As quick as her piece is, it’s still quite effective… and funny. Visual effects artist Ramiro Bélanger, the guy who has helped create the stunningly surreal imagery in “Sin City” and “300”, also lends some respectability to “Dead Time Stories” contributing a short film titled “Radical Riffle Icon” – his directorial debut which he loads up with the same stylized imagery.

The first short film on the docket is “The Transformation” and is written and directed by Steve Villeneuve (2007’s “Countess Bathoria's Graveyard Picture Show”). Returning home after being viciously assaulted while on a late night stroll, a man (Alex Fournier) begins to suspect that he might be turning into a vampire, however, he’s not quick to jump to any conclusions. The next morning he is visited by none other than JC himself, who only works to further confuse him. It isn’t until a beautiful blonde knocks on his door that everything becomes clear. Without giving too much away I'll just mention that it involves someone getting a crimson facial (sorta like the one we saw in Duke Hendrix's “Bloodspit”). Villeneuve has clearly written this very short piece as a horror-comedy bit, however none of it really works. Arriving at the conclusion, you’ll begin to realize that the whole sketch was probably conceived as a set up to a less than funny punchline, one that arrives with a thud and is more juvenile and silly than hilarious.

The next film on the list is “The Closet” which is written and directed by Hugo Bissonnet (2008’s “Coventry Lanes”). This mini-short, which features the talented and beautiful Debbie Rochon, an actress who has appeared in over 150 b-movies since getting her start back in 1981, is not that memorable minus one specific gore sequence and, well, the appearance of Debbie Rochon. Arriving at her hotel room, Debbie, playing what I can only contend is a version of herself, is surprised when a ghoul pops out of her closet and violently attacks her. Considering that Debbie has done numerous variations of this same kind of scene throughout her career, she instantly knows what to do – castrate him. Ouch! Like Villeneuve’s piece before it, this too seems to be setting up a punchline; however this one is actually quite funny. Hide the sewing kit.

The next film is called “Getting Even” and is written and directed by William Dio. It stars Jean-Philippe Boivin and is described on the box as a “film noir with a twist”. I’m not entirely sure if shooting in black and white immediately makes your film ‘film noir’ but Dio is definitely trying to capture the mood of that once celebrated genre. Wounded and in bad shape, a man, played by Jean-Philippe Boivin, is preparing to take action, while running over in his mind what lead him to be injured in the first place. This isn’t a particularly interesting short that arrives like a passing Via Train. Utilizing the light and shadows, Dio is desperately trying to portray that moody noir vibe, and it shows. Even the gruff dialogue seems to be borrowed from a Mickey Spillane novel. For the most part, he achieves his desire, but as a whole, the piece isn’t really that memorable. =

"The Last Day” is the next film in the line up and it is written and directed by David Aubin. Starring Alex Adm, Vincent Charbonneau, Myriam Leblanc, Steve Villeneuve, Yan Juteau, Benoit Leblanc, Jean-Charles West and Steve L’Ecuyer, this 8-minute short plays out like the last ten minutes of “Dawn of the Dead” or maybe a better comparison would be “Zombie Night 2”.  “The Last Day” is another in a long line of post-apocalyptic zombie flicks, however this one kicks in generally where most other films of this variety would be ending, just as the zombies are overtaking the complex (or compound or whatever?) and the survivors are forced to try to escape in one piece. The compound here is located in some indistinct (and scenic) forest somewhere and the guys are in full Southern militia mode. Again, aside from some gore and some very cool action sequences, there isn’t much to recommend about this simply because we’ve seen it all before. To Aubin’s credit, I did enjoy the ending, which involves a pair of survivors, suddenly out of bullets, making a mad dash towards the salvation of a car only to realize that neither of them has the keys. Now that is cool.

"The Dinner” is next up and it is written and directed by Steve Villeneuve. Starring Alex Fournier, Hugo Bissonnet, Luc Bernier, Melanie Brunet, Penelope Jolicoeur and Magenta Baribeau, this short is tied with “The Hit” as my favourite of the lot. When a couple is invited to dinner, little do they realize what their hosts have planned for the evening’s main dish. It’s pretty obvious what is happening with this short, even from the first scene, however, with a single, droll joke, Villeneuve manages to sway the audience in a certain unexpected direction at a key scene -- actually getting the audience on board with the killers. Despite the crassness involved, this is brilliant writing indeed! There is also a certain wry humour at work here that, unlike his “The Transformation” piece, works. Funny and scary, this is a short film that delivers the goods across the board. 

"Vampyros Lesbos” is Matthew Saliba’s homage to Jess Franco’s wonderfully bizarre film of the same name. Starring Matthew Saliba, Isabelle Stephen, Kitty Daly, Kayden Rose and Denis Coupal, this short, which is pumped up by an amazing soundtrack featuring the one and only Marilyn Manson, is an imaginative recreation of Jess Franco’s vision using nothing but still images. This is an accomplished piece that manages to convey all the right emotions through a great score, some good photography and some wonderful editing. After his wife (Isabelle Stephen) is seduced at a nightclub by a female vampire, a husband (Matthew Saliba) takes it upon himself to get revenge. With the help of a Catholic Priest (Denis Coupal), Saliba transforms into an unforgiving hunter and begins a brutal trek back to the vampire that took his wife from him – leaving many bodies in his wake. I’ve seen a variation of this on the comedy sketch show “Mad TV” and, at first, I suspected that was the direction it was heading. I’m glad Saliba decided to stick to morose.

"1888” is the next short film on the hit list and Simon Berube is the driving force behind it. Set in, of course, 1888 in England, this animated film involves a play on the old Jack the Ripper story only with a significant Lovecraftian twist. During a late night stroll, a man runs headlong into an evil-looking monster standing in the street, one that knocks him to the cobblestone and leaves him terrified. Nearly bashing you over the head with metaphor, the film arrives at its less than satisfying conclusion. Despite some very good animation, this is a truly forgettable short. It’s interesting to note that the director Simon Berube received a Best Director award from the Spasms Film Festival for this short. As a whole, it doesn't really fit with the film but I also felt the same way of Digger Films other effort, "Stories of a Gravedigger" which also featured some animation.

Visual effects artist Ramiro Bélanger arrives with his first film “Radical Riffle Icon” and it’s a doozie. Starring Richard Zeman, Mark Antony Krupa, Omari Newton, Natalie Vanser and Andre Bernier, this high concept short film involves soldiers being resurrected in order to carry out various missions in what appears to be a virtual reality/movie landscape. Even the enemy, a ninja, feels like a bad film composite. There is a lot going on here on a subterranean level. The whole resurrecting the actor to re-live past deeds feels like an allegory on a culture consumed by celebrity – in one instance, it’s a soldier who willingly risks the life of his friend in order to rescue another soldier who appeared in a TV show in a previous life. Interestingly, the film’s story is sometimes dwarfed by the amazing visuals, created by “Sin City” artist, Bélanger. On a whole, this short is arresting. Personally, I wasn’t engaged enough with the characters to name it as a favourite however I do salute Ramiro for making a wonderful and thoughtful piece of art.

"The Hit” written and directed by William Dio is the next in line. Starring Marc-Antoine Desjardins, Diane Robillard, Nancy Belanger Pilond, Isabelle Lefebvre, Louis-Rene Auclair, Hugo Bissonnet, Olivier Desjardins, Alexander Fournier, Jacob Gauthier, Samuel Gauthier, Dominic Seguin and Steve Villeneuve. Playing a hitman named Ishmael, Marc-Antoine Desjardins absolutely owns his character. This a ballsy short that will definitely appeal to Sam Peckinpah enthusiasts, and other folks who like their flicks with a side order of testosterone. Ishmael is a no-nonsense hitman, carrying out his orders with a sort of fluid Zen-like proficiency. It begins with a knock on a door. A young unassuming blonde woman answers the door and is abruptly beaten to a pulp by Ishmael, who next moves through the house dispatching anyone in his line of sight. While this is playing out on screen, Ishmael, in a voice-over narration, methodically lays out “the rules” for which he adheres to. This short, filmed in black and white, is absolutely fucking brilliant. Instead of Xavier Gens directing “Hitman” in 07, I kind of wish William Dio would have been given a shot. I can only imagine what he would have achieved given his work here.

The final short is “Jeremiah” and it is written and directed by Steve Villeneuve. Starring Lauro D. Matteo, Alex Fournier, Daniel Ristic and Isabelle Giroux, “Jeremiah” features one gratuitous sex scene followed by some cheesy digital gore effects followed by a homage to every early 80’s slasher flick where the killer was “in the house” and the girl just barely escapes – in this case, by a hair. This feels like a set-up to a feature, the kind of thing shot in hopes of securing funding. Daniel Ristic plays the titular character of which the title takes its name and yeah, I guess he looks menacing enough -- in that rabid hillbilly kind of way. Nothing too memorable but a nice way to end this anthology showcase.

Royce passed this e-mail along to me just the other day. It's from Steve Villeneuve himself, owner of Digger Films.

"Just want to take a few minutes to thank you for the review that you made on “DeadTime Stories”. You made us laugh a lot and you were right on every thing that you said in your review. A lot of films in this compilation have been shot in one day -- really quickly for a program here (Quebec, Montreal) called "KINO". The rules are simple, you have forty-eight hours to write, shoot and edit your film before it is screened later that night. So "The Transformation” (awful film… lol) was shot in 25 minutes. “The Closet”, “The Last Day”, “The Dinner” and “Getting Even” was shot in about 4 hours each. Well, The Closet was about 1 hour, I think :) Afterwards, we went out to eat at a restaurant with our friend Debbie (Rochon)!

About “Jeremiah”, you are totally right. We shot that in one day to test our equipment and DP and sound man etc. In the future we want to do the feature film version. Maybe in two years. We will shoot at the end of the month, our third "Film Noir". And after that we are shooting our part in the Mathew Saliba F.U. Well, thanks for the review."