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“Killers” Unrated, Director’s Cut on Blu-ray from Synapse!

Odessa and Kyle James paint half their faces with skull imagery, don their Santa hats, and load their pump action shotguns and on Christmas Eve, walk into their parents’ bedroom and unload multiple shells into them where they lay without mercy. A trial sentences them to death row for their crimes despite their calm efforts to dismiss the State and prosecutor’s case against them. Years later, the brothers escape from the maximum-security prison and are the loose in the town of Beatty where the Ryan family happily watch television and play board games on a stormy night. With U.S. Marshalls hot on their tail, Odessa and Kyle invade the Ryan home where their strangely more than warmly welcomed by the mother and two daughters. It quickly becomes clear their usurpation of the Ryan household is more of a sheep in a wolf’s clothing and the meager, goody-two shoes Mr. Ryan will reestablish dominance and show the James Boys the real man of the house.

1996 marks the year of Mike Mendez’s debut feather-length film, titled simply “Killers.” “The Covenant” and “Satanic Hispanic” segment director writes and direct a philosophical and brutal home invasion thriller cowritten by one of the film’s principal actors, the late Dave Larsen (“Vampire Centerfolds”), full of unusual twists that can second guess everything you know about storytelling. “Killers” cements under his greenhorn feet novel elements of twisted character studies while finding homes for bad boy cool characters, stylized shootouts, and a smoky noir and dark dwelling cinematography to commingle with his anarchic structure and tale. The U.S. produced film is independent funded by star-producer Dave Larsen under the LLC of The Lost Boys, a reference from the film’s story that labels the escaped convicted brothers as such, with Joseph E. Jones-Marion as coproducer. Most of the funds were secured by Dave Larsen’s father, S.E. Larsen, after remortgaging the family home. Eventually, the home was foreclosed upon after Dave’s premature death.

Dave Larsen and David Gunn entrench themselves into the sordid souls of sociopathic brothers Odessa and Kyle James, inspired almost to the exact murder by real-life killers the Menendez Brothers who committed parricide in nearly the exact shotgun-loaded manner in Beverly Hills 1989. Portraying mindful. ruthless killers with intellectual monologues and a panache that’s very Mickey Rourke pastiche, the solemn faces and confidence carrying Larsen and Gunn go greatly above and beyond the call for the titular types. Thinking the summit has been reached and there could be nothing more grave than two brothers snuffing their own mom and dad without hesitation, who kill Beatty locals with intent, who steal daughters (Nanette Biachi, “The Killer Eye,” and Renee Cohen) and a wife (Damian Hoffer) for their own carnal pleasures, and who bully and insult a respected husband, father, and man (Burke Morgan, “Bloodsucking Babes from Burbank”) of the Beatty community, the tables suddenly and jarringly turn and viewers will be knocked unbalanced when the police storm the door, lead by U.S. Marshal Lorna McCoy, played by the quick and sarcastic lip of Wendy Latta, and discover just then who that two killers are actually more in this seemingly quiet and small suburban house, rivaling the James boys, if not surpassing their malevolence even if just a little. The “Killers’” cast doesn’t stop there as Ellis Moore (“Femme Fontaine: Killer Babe for the C.I.A.”), Ivan Vertigo, Chad Sommers, and Carol Baker becomes a part of the fray.

“Killers” defined is simply a conceptual paradox. If two unstoppable forces collide, the logical result would be an unfathomable outcome as nothing can stop an unstoppable force. Instead, what may occur is a massive particle explosion, a rift in dimension time and space, or a vast nightmare so bizarre nothing can compare to it. “Killer” embodies every quality of the latter in its maniacal melting pot of phantasmagoric potpourri, especially through the Mendez lens of engulfing shadows and mostly Duke blue and poker hot red gel tints. Following the progression is a guessing game unto itself with welcoming and shocking pivots that parade forth a Hell on Earth turn of events. You think the story’s going one way then it acutely shifts, and this happens more than once to the point where none of the previous groundwork or what’s instore for the future can be taken for granted in this fluid, subversive, kill-or-be-killed home invasion and cannibal bipartite. For a first-time independent production, weapon props are extensive, gory moments are effective, makeup has grotesque appeal, and the dialogue indulges in shades of conversation complexity that equally match the complexity of the characters’ MacGuffin backgrounds. Mike Mendez’s impressive start to his career has provocative monologue and stylish notes of Quentin Tarantino and William Freidkin bathed in primary color gels and a tale zigzagging with zeal.

Available for the first time in high-definition, the director’s vision, restored by the Multicom Entertainment Group, is in the hands of Synapse Films, delivering “Killers” to the cult physical media table with an AVC encoded, 1080p high-definition, BD50 Blu-ray. Presented in the 1.78:1 aspect ratio, “Killers” has a stylistic choice of being tenebrous, whether in shadow, in night, or just to over exuded a sense of gloom and doom in tone and in what’s visually shown. Delineated blue and red gel lighting beam through and glow the necessary bits for effulgence effect to contrast the darkness. Another popping source of lighting and colors are the individualized, punchy Christmas colors because, for all who don’t know, “Killers” is actually a Christmas movie. Because of the cheerless grading, details are not inherently sharp but Synapse and Multicom’s restoration enlightens quite a bit than previous versions, putting rightfully on display the details where once shrouded by lower resolution or otherwise mishandled. Skin tones appear natural as well as the grain with a scintilla of white speckle. The lossless English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 stereo has an organic dual-channel dynamic, catering a central focus on the monologuing, that translate to the dialogue exchanges also, with great enthusiasm and clarity. Not the best in edited sound design that has layer slippage but pulls enough ahead and into the fold to not be an unsynchronous, incongruous mess. “Killers” could have greatly benefited from a surround mix with the varietal exchanges that emits a full-bodied arrangement of resonations, mostly in the interiors and playing to those specific in locations. English subtitles are available. Special features include a feature-paralleling audio commentary with director Mike Mendez and horror journalist Michael Gingold going over backstory, tidbits, and the goals of making “Killers,” an alternate, pared-down ending that’s loses a lot of the original film’s feasting flavor, and the original promotional trailer. The black Amaray case comes with new illustrative cover art without a reversible option. Inside contains a 6-page essay My Brother Death: Mike Mendez’s Killers by cult film enthusiast Heather Drain, a Synapse 2025 product catalogue, and a disc pressed with Odessa’s half-skull covered face. The region free release has a 96-minute runtime and is unrated.

Last Rites: Synapse Films have brought “Killers” from out of the shadows of obscurity. A schismatic, soulless killer of a film, “Killers” has the heart of madmen and madness meshed together in one seriously sideways story.

“Killers” Unrated, Director’s Cut on Blu-ray from Synapse!

Former high profile wrestler Buck Sever finds himself in a world of personal hurt. After a family tragedy and a derailing injury, Sever’s stuck in what’s left of his life with not much reason or motivation to pick himself back up. High school friend Trent Masters organizes a bros weekend on an urban legend infamous game preserve called Foggy Creek for some drinking and hunting, but even his so-called friends exploit his celebrity status to attract women and gain personal benefit. They spot themselves right in the heart of the game preserve said to be notorious for backwoods murders committed in the 1960’s at the hands of local legend Jeb Tucker. Blowing off the mystery shrouding Foggy Creek, the four friends soon find themselves face-to-face with a mask killer with immense strength that equals Sever’s and there’s no stopping his onslaught of spilling weekend warrior blood.

Wrestling is a multi-billion dollar global juggernaut with a fan base like no other and as an industry has seen a steady increase in popularity that spans over decades. The sports iconic wrestlers are idolized by many adoring fans who hold up supportive signage at matches, imitate their trademark finishing moves with friends on makeshift rings, and even sport their merchandise while throwing out their favorite wrestlers’ memorable gestures. The sport has been become so engrained into our culture, movies like Mickey Rourke’s “The Wrestler,” that show the downtrodden life of a has-been wrestler, can be nominated and win major studio awards, such as an Oscar or a Golden Globe, and wrestlers have been seeping into the film industry that’s now at a raging pace where the professional body slammers are some of the highest paid actors, such as the established Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and John Cena. However, not every wrestler can be a glamourous super-stud in the cinematic universe. That’s the case with “100 Acres of Hell” directed by Hank Leigh Hump and starring 6’8″ Gene Snitsky and Samula “Samu” Anoa’i. Produced and penned by Snitsky, co-written alongside with Ed McKeever (“Bikini Girls Vs.The Surf Wolf”) and Jason Koerner (“Zombie Death Camp”) to enthrall a survival, campsite horror set and shot in the rural backyards of Pennsylvania.

Snitsky, retired from professional wrestling in 2018, turns to acting late in his career with his entry into the indie circuit. He portrays Buck Severs, a gargantuan man in a tragic life slump, whose seems like a harmless, gentle giant with a group of eccentric and callous group of friends that treat him poorly despite their best intentions. Snitsky’s has moments of genuine truth in delivery and body language, especially for crowd performer. Jim Roof plays one of his friends, Bo McKeever, a sordid white liar of a car salesman always looking to score between two legs. I remember Roof from his role as a snuff filmmaker in another film with “100” in the title – “House with 100 Eyes.” Roof’s funny and likable alongside Snitsky, but the other half of the “Bros” weekend pack droll with weak characterizations despite decent performances from Jeff Swanton and Ernest O’Donnell (“Jay and Silent Bob Reboot”). Both their roles fall flat by running out of steam when the potential is at the peak of flowing through their veins and unfortunately fizzle before they can be an pivotal means to an end. Catherine Corcoran (“Terrifier”), Meg Carriero (“Return to Return to Nuke ‘Em High Aka Vol. 2”), Bob Cleary (“Shadows of the Forest”) and Eileen Dietz (“Halloween II” remake) round out of the cast.

“100 Acres of Hell” sounds like a tour de force of forestry fury coupled with two ex-wrestlers and a backwards, backwoods, hillbilly killer without a cause, but that is where the pipe dream ends and an enigmatic reality sets in. The banter between the friends is palatable and, dare I say it, amusing at times and the camping setup, though trope-conventional, is braced with a solid foundation and a good catalytic promise of beer and urban legend to get things moving toward Foggy Creek. Where “100 Acres of Hell” ultimately falters, in a pair of places, is around the second into the third act as characters are quickly whacked from the story like the combat denizens of the second Mortal Kombat film – “Annihilation.” Jeb Tucker literally wipes the floor with the unlucky campers and their guests like an inbred super Shredder. Secondly, Hank Leigh Hump’s directorial debut is coherently challenging, an unbalanced execution, and a character imploding mishap that shapes “100 Acres of Hell’s” latter half into a struggle to comprehension. Hump’s film feels and looks incomplete from this perspective as if the post-production quickly finalize the project with blind haste and willy-nilly attitude.

“100 Acres of Hell” is a Jersey Lights and Screenshot Entertainment production paying homage to the Golden Age of slashers in the 1980’s with a masked killer and a high body count. The home video distributor, Indican Pictures, released the DVD and the digital streaming services this past October. Unfortunately, a screener copy was provided from this review and a full critique of the image and audio quality will not be covered. As far as bonus material, the screener contained a static menu with Indican Pictures’ preview trailers and a chaptered scene selection. Two former WWE wresters battle out of the ring and onto the screen with a retrograde slasher, “100 Acres of Hell,” but can’t pin down a 1-2-3 count for a win. Alternatively, if looking for the summit version of Jeb Tucker’s personal hunting reserve, a digital “100 Acres of Hell” comic from Swampline Comics offers a colorfully pulpy rendition of Tucker’s brutal adventures in slaying and enslaving campers…something the movie could not provide.