Usually when I hear a wrestler is going to be in a horror film the thought of it kind of irks my spirit. With the exception of Rowdy Piper who is good in any kind of horror film and Kane in See No Evil; most horror films pretty much go no where when a wrestler is involved. I think the fact that we see them wrestling in a ring every week and we know them as faces or heels takes away from any kind of emotional scares they might inflict on us in a horror film. It’s different when they are heroes in the films, but as monsters or villains I have a hard time being frightened.
In River of Darkness, Sheriff Will Logan (Kurt Angle) is the law in the small town of Cedar Springs. When people begin showing up brutally murdered. The people of the town start to worry that an old curse is back. The Jacobs boys (Kevin Nash, “Psycho Sid Vicious Eudy” and Bill Laing) were local fisherman that were murdered by the town folks years ago. One of the boys was falsely accused of raping a local town girl. The truth is a different story, but now they are back from the dead and taking revenge on the town. Now it is up to to Sheriff Will Logan to stop them before an even bloodier massacre begins.
I don’t even know whereto begin on how bad this film is. It says on IMDB.com that this film was made for almost four million dollars. Where did all that money go? Into the actors pockets? Seriously folks, I don’t know what to say. The film was shot on inexpensive digital video, and trust me when I tell you the film has quality issues. The make-up effects looked like they came from one of those Halloween kits you buy at Walmart, and the overall production value was not that good at all. I will give the script writers some credit, the story is decent and some of the dialogue is not half bad. However, the scripts translation to film was horrible. If I had to compare it to anything; the film would fit right in well with those low budget B-movies from the eighties like Woodchipper Massacre or Cannibal Campout. Except they were better!
The acting in the film is not all that great either. Kurt Angle is no actor, he’s great in the ring or on a mat, but acting is something the man needs to work on. Sure he can work a great skit on camera when in character for a match, but he’s had a lot of practice at that. In the movies it’s a whole other ball game. The rest of the cast was alright, but no one really stood out. I’m not just saying this because he happens to be a friend of mine, but really the best performance in the film came from actor Alan Rowe Kelly playing Crazy Mary. The part was small, but Alan gave it his all for the small amount of screen time the character had. Night of the Living Dead Zombie #1 Bill Hinzman also did well in his small role as a local bait shop owner. However, the acting is what you would expect it to be from a B-movie, nothing great. Yet I’ve seen a lot worse in films that were much better, so don’t write off the performances as bad, but lets say some of the actors had it, while other didn’t.
Overall, River of Darkness is a horror film that I feel was made more for fans of wrestling to see. Fan who like to see some of their favorite wrestlers in a movie where they are playing different roles other than the ones they play weekly in a ring. It is not a good film at all, and I cannot recommend it to anyone unless you like b-movies, are a hardcore wrestling fan or like bad horror films. It’s as simple as that.
– Horror Bob
- Interview with J.R. Bookwalter - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Andrew J. Rausch - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Rick Popko and Dan West - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Director Stevan Mena (Malevolence) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Screenwriter Jeffery Reddick (Day of the Dead 2007) - January 22, 2015
- Teleconference interview with Mick Garris (Masters of Horror) - January 22, 2015
- A Day at the Morgue with Corri English (Unrest) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Writer/Director Nacho Cerda (The Abandoned, Aftermath) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Actress Thora Birch (Dark Corners, The Hole, American Beauty) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Actor Jason Behr, Plus Skinwalkers Press Coverage - January 22, 2015
