Medal of Horror
Written and directed by Jim Eaves
If only we got to the crazy Nazi lady sooner ...
Frankly, the kick-off to the anthology drags terribly. It takes about 15 minutes to set up the premise, which is that a young British soldier is being sent on a suicide mission because he broke the heart of his superior officer's daughter. The daughter has been kidnapped, and the soldier must bring her back alive -- or not, her father doesn't seem to care much for his daughter, he's more invigorated by the idea of vengeance.
Once the action begins in earnest, the short becomes measurably more involving, but the tone flips back and forth between solemn and silly to no apparent purpose, other than, perhaps, the filmmakers realized that they needed more levity.
This might have made an effective 10-12 minute short film, but at 36 minutes it's too long and insufficiently engaging to sustain interest for its length.
Harriet's War
Written and directed by Alan Ronald
Things pick up considerably with the nimble second film. It's a light-hearted affair, following the indomitable Harriet Price, played by Lara Lemon with no-nonsense pluck. She commands every scene in which she appears, which is a good thing, since she's in almost every scene.
Harriet is a paranormal investigator who is sent to a rural village after a strange death. The murder mystery suits the running time, and the effects -- swastikas mysteriously appearing to kill people -- are quite effective, adding a ghoulish touch.
Character-based horror is always a good thing, and I'd love to see more adventures from the case of file of Ms. Price.
Devils of the Blitz
Written and directed by Pat Higgins
Ostensibly a creature feature, the third entry is the most ambitious.
The creatures themselves are unfortunately compromised -- the motion effects are not very convincing, I'm afraid -- but Higgins seems more interested in the psychological breakdown of a family under the terror of the Blitz.
The ideas that are introduced, especially the thought of the nuclear family being torn asunder while bombs destroy the neighborhood, are intriguing, and even though it's not resolved to any great satisfaction, there's something more going on here than monsters in the basement.
The Region 1 DVD from Revolver Entertainment is bare-bones. On the other hand, it offers an opportunity to see three independent filmmakers working out ideas with plenty of promise.
Buy at Amazon.
