SXSW 2014: AMONG THE LIVING Review

Release Date: TBD
Directors: Alexandre Bustillo, Julien Maury
MPAA Rating: NR
Film Pulse Score: 5.5/10

The latest French horror flick from directors Alexandre Bustillo and Julien Maury (Inside, Livid) is being described as Stand By Me meets Friday the 13^th.  That statement alone sold me on this nasty little slasher called Among the Living.  Unfortunately, the Stand By Me mechanic gets tossed aside fairly early on, and the film becomes more of a typical slasher with some very silly moments tacked on near the end.

The film revolves around three best friends who decide to ditch school on their last day before summer vacation and head out to the abandoned amusement park.  While exploring, they witness a man pulling a battered and beaten woman out of a trunk.  The boys follow them in order to rescue the girl, however after being seen they must flee for their lives after the man’s mutant son gives chase. 

Among the Living begins with the back-story of our villains.  We get to witness, in gory detail, who this father and son duo are, and how the mutant son came to be.  In addition to an excuse to show some ridiculous over the top and very horrific gore, this quick prologue gives the audience an idea of what these kids are up against, and helps make things slightly more logical.

The first act with the three kids together is fantastic, and something I hoped would last throughout the entire film.  I was excited to see how these three would work together to escape this superhuman monster, however that wasn’t the case.  After escaping the amusement park the kids go to their respective homes and must then contend with the creature one on one.  This is where the movie started losing me.

There are far too many coincidences throughout that make everything fall into place so perfectly.  This is a minor annoyance, but if you take these elements out, the movie would fall apart.  There are also a number of unbelievable and illogical decisions the characters make, especially near the climax.  This proves to be frustrating and ultimately seems in place only to throw in a twist at the end.

The creature hunting the boys is significantly creepy, however some people may find his mannerisms and look to be unintentionally funny.  Although he’s only supposed to be 11 years old, his father’s exposures to chemical weapons rendered him giant, with undeveloped sex organs, super speed, and super strength.  I’ll spare the details on his actual appearance as to not spoil any surprises, but he looks crazy.

Among the Living has a lot going for it, but for a film that wants to focus heavily on the friendship of the three boys, it abandons the idea far too quickly.  There’s still plenty of over the top violence and some solid humor to be had, but the path it takes especially at the end is disappointing.