The Defiled Shows That Originality is Not Dead in the Horror Genre
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The Defiled demonstrates that sometimes you just have to dig a little deeper to find originality in horror. Without saying a word, this film speaks volumes.
Written by James "Crypticpsych" Lasome
February 12, 2011
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Release: 2010 (Festival Play), March 22, 2011 (US DVD)
Directed by: Julian Grant
Written by: Julian Grant
Starring:
Brian Shaw as Yar
Kathleen Lawlor as Janice
Alden Moore as Hak
Almir Limaj as Stabber
We open on a family trying to survive a world ravaged by some sort of viral contagion. Scientists seem to be hunting down and killing any and all infected in an effort to stamp out the problem. The head of the family, Yar (Shaw), does his best to keep the group in line and out of danger, including his pregnant wife Hak (Moore). If the names weren't a clue, this is where the originality comes in… the family's already been infected. As the group craves flesh, Yar brings home a body from a suspicious tent for his wife and two children. Yar passes on it himself and instead chooses to drink the alcohol he found in the tent. The next morning, the rest of the family grows violently ill and passes away from contamination in the meat. Yar, having managed to save his newborn son from his wife's corpse, is left to attempt to watch over his son and find a better future. Along the way, he rescues an uninfected woman named Janice (Lawlor) from two of the infected. She, taken by his seeming refusal to
eat her and his fatherly compassion, goes with him on his journey, helping him protect his son. Will they find salvation from the sickness?
Original seems to be an understatement when describing The Defiled. I have honestly never seen a movie remotely like this in my life. There is dialogue in the movie, but none is intelligible. Instead, all the characters, even the uninfected Janice, speak in grunts, groans, whines, whimpers, and yells. One might think the story would be hurt by this but it's actually totally followable. In fact, the lack of dialogue forces the viewer to pay more attention to the great performances of the leads so that they understand what's going on. I will admit that there were moments I wasn't entirely sure why Yar was mad at Janice or vice-versa but I still understood the overall storyline and totally bought into it.
Stylistically, Julian Grant films almost the entire movie in near-black and white. It helps build the feel of apocalyptic wasteland that he's going for immensely as does the dilapidated, abandoned, and wrecked locations he
shot in. I'm not sure who scouted the locations for this, but whoever it was needs a raise and another movie to work on, immediately. Because of these factors as well as solid camera work, a great score, and well-synced audio, The Defiled looks like it cost far more money than it probably did and is far more professional-feeling and haunting as a result than many indie releases.
The effects in The Defiled are top-notch, in particular Yar's baby. Given the budgetary limitations that are presented in an indie-flick, it's totally understandable that they weren't able to use a real infant. Instead, the filmmakers use a mind-blowingly realistic puppet that instantly helps make just how focused Yar is on the son's protection believable. In terms of "zombie"/infected makeup, the film is also decent, seeming to ascribe to a Night of the Living Dead sort of aesthetic that fits in well with its black-and-white cinematography.
Admittedly, though, while I do recommend this film be seen at least once by every horror fan who's complained about a lack of originality, The Defiled is by no means perfect. Its biggest flaw is its pace and length. Clocking in at 110 minutes or so, the film is overloaded with scenes of Yar and Janice walking from place to place. Some of these scenes are necessary, of course, but at the very least I'd wager a good 20 minutes of that could have been shaved off to tighten the film somewhat. Also, I have to admit that, while I bought into Janice accompanying Yar as the movie went on, I'd love to know exactly what possessed her to do it originally since she seems to just kind of do it apropos of nothing. I get that he saved her from danger of course, but he's still an infected and she seemed suddenly VERY forgiving of that fact.
Overall, while not perfect, The Defiled epitomizes the reason that every horror fan should pay some degree of attention to indie films. I seriously doubt that any mainstream studio would put a movie like this into 4000 theaters, but you can still find that kind of outside-the-box thinking in the indie world if you dig long enough through the pile. Of course, the film does still need a bit of polish and maybe could've worked even better as a 30-50 minute short film. However, that doesn't change the fact that if you give The Defiled a chance, you'll likely come away having had an experience the likes of which you haven't had before and may not have again for a long time.
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