Embedded Files
Gun Town (2009)
6/10
Gun Town website- Gun Town
IMDB page- http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1511377/
Synopsis- Crazy family sort of runs a western themed park, kills people.
Tag line- Draw… or die!
Director and Writer Lee Vervoort
Shelly Christianna Aronstam (several TV guest appearances)
Dr. Sawbones/ Sheriff Tim Emery
Frank Bailey Sr./ Jake Lee Vervoort (diversified portfolio)
Frank Bailey Jr. Andy Grace
Kevin Weston Brann
Matt Joshua Harrison
Tracy Lauren Hoffman
Jerry Andrew Thornhill
Victoria Bailey Morgan Gaham
Michelle Kayti Protos
Full disclosure- I consider Mr. Vorvoort to be an acquaintance. Not so close as a friend, but someone whom I correspond with occasionally. I will try to be as objective as possible in this review.
If you want spoilers, they are linked at the bottom of this review.
DVD includes:
Blooper reel (poor Michelle eats her hair about 6 times.)
Location walkthrough
Trailer
Our film starts with text explaining that Frank Sr. and Victoria Bailey worked at 'Gun Town' back in 1979, where something goes badly. A sepia toned montage of the 'Gun Town' with someone getting shot ensues. Another title card explaining that Frank went crazy and was sent away to a mental institution for 30 years.
We jump forward to 2009 (ah, 30 years) to find some recently graduated high schoolers (cough cough) getting ready to go on a trip. One girl, Michelle, is late and missing for the trip. The two other girls (Shelly and Tracy) meet up with two guys (Kevin and Matt) with bad dialogue. Nerdy hanger-on (Jerry) shows up and the girls talk the guys into letting him come along. Besides, Jerry stole some wine coolers! That are never seen or mentioned again.
The troupe goes driving, apparently in random directions as they get hopelessly lost within an hour. At a brief rest stop, a creepy gentleman warns them that odd things happen in this area. A bit further down the road, the group stops to totally not help a man (Jake) with a broken down truck. He also warns of weirdness, as it appears someone sabotaged his truck.
A lit bit later the group notices Michelle's abandoned car on the side of the road. Without cell phone service (shocker), they try to find a phone. Pulling into the driveway for Gun Town, they blow out a tire. Since they do not have a 'tire changer' [sic], they go looking for help.
In Gun Town, the group meets the family that apparently lives there. It is not explained why they are there, or if the town is still running in any capacity. Events quickly go downhill from here on.
The cinematography is rather nice, with what looks like decent film stock.
The dialogue goes from iffy to good. Line delivery is variable.
The sound levels are very good. Dialogue is easy to hear, and loud noises (i.e. gun shots) do not explode your speakers. Great sound equalization.
The acting is better than your average direct to video movie. It will not win any awards, but I have seen worse acting on SyFy and from most Asylum movies.
There is not many SFX. This was a good call, since if you cannot pull of the FX, do not try. Some funny looking props are present.
I really like the mask on Frank Sr. It has a Michael Myers feel, but for some reason it seems creepier.
There is not a lot of music in the film, but when present it is used well.
Overall a mostly pleasant film to watch. It does have slow spots, and some of the action invokes the "why are they doing that?" feeling. The story is interesting, if a bit contrived at points. 'Gun Town' is well done for a low budget, first time movie. There are other independent film makers (Ted V. Mikels, the Polonia brothers) with more money and several films under their belts who still make movies that are below the level of 'Gun Town.' This film deserves a look, though its repeat viewing value is probably limited.
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