Two teenage boys unwittingly summon an ancient evil entity known as The Blind One by delving into black magic while trying to escape their mundane lives. Jason Lei Howden's feature film debut is a gleefully written & confidently directed splatter comedy that wickedly blends the elements of heavy metal insanity, gore-friendly horror & slapstick humour into one crazy, hilarious & delightfully deranged flick that amuses, amazes & thrills in equal doses.<br/><br/>The story of Deathgasm takes place in a small Kiwi town and follows a pair of misfits who are also fans of heavy metal music. Things are set in motion when the two come across some old sheets of music and after playing it, unintentionally summon an ancient demon, thus endangering the lives of all.<br/><br/>Written & directed by Jason Lei Howden, Deathgasm brims with heavy metal motifs from beginning to end and also parodies many classics over the course of its runtime. The plot moves at a frenetic pace, the dialogues are sharp & at times inventive, the music stays true to its roots, and the gags it has in store keep surfacing at regular intervals.<br/><br/>The entire cast chips in with fine performances, with actors who play Brodie & Zakk impressing the most plus their chemistry is spot-on too. The frenzy camera-work infuses an unbridled energy of its own into the premise, the morbid humour is brilliantly timed, manic tone is consistently maintained, and it goes absolutely bonkers in the final act, which isn't a complaint by the way.<br/><br/>On an overall scale, Deathgasm is as uproarious, wild & demented as the subgenre of rock music it pays its tribute to, is well aware of both its strengths & limitations and prefers to enjoy & revel in its madness. Highly refreshing, ridiculously funny & unabashedly raunchy, this blood-splattered metal horror is an unexpected delight for both metalheads & genre enthusiasts. Definitely worth a shot. Lonesome metaller is exiled to respectable suburbia, where he unwittingly summons down a demon god when he plays the tune from Hell. Can he defeat the forces of evil with his new butter-wouldn't-melt girlfriend?<br/><br/>Starts off at ferocious pace, with the editing taken from Shaun Of The Dead + Bill And Ted. The lead actor plays it perfectly, and is well backed by the cast (apart from the cousin), and the gags are packed in. Best of the lot is the diesel and the ambulance.<br/><br/>But … I checked my watch at about 45 mins. Hmmm. I think there's a point where the protagonist has to change, and it felt like something strange was going to happen when he looked in the mirror after being beat up. Instead, things change around him, and the story goes Buffy-zombie as it plays out in Wheedon/Scoobie-Doo style.<br/><br/>Plenty of real-effect gore, with some laughs - big set scene with sex toys - but just a bit yawny as the inevitable climax plays out. Not sure whether this is to it's credit, but the laid-pipe deus ex machina was dodged and, instead, used in the end credits for a gag.<br/><br/>Full of metal, but the mood music and horror sounds were tame and unimaginative.<br/><br/>Overall, skillful techniques with camera and editing, but not that engaging. Peppered with clever, self-referential one-liners that whip by almost too fast to catch them, Deathgasm is – like most metalheads/punks/Morrissey fans – a helluva lot smarter than one might at first suspect.
Callclea replied
345 weeks ago