W.A.F. Reviews: "Freaks Of Nature" (2015)

I love horror films. I have no problem admitting that. And although I much prefer the horror of the past, from the classics from Universal, to the Hammer series, to the slasher genre of the ‘80s and ‘90s, I do admit that in the present day, there are a select few films that stick out from the constant barrage of jump scare-filled found footage movies that seem to inundate the market on a fairly regular basis. Throughout the years, filmmakers have tried to take the horror genre and mix in other elements to try and be different. In 2015, a film was released which looked to do just that, combining horror with something that seems to always find a way into a scary movie, whether it be intentional or not. Comedy. With this in mind, let’s take a look at “Freaks Of Nature”.

The film tells the story of a small town called Dillford, which is the home to not just humans, but also groups of vampires and zombies, and everyone spends everyday trying to live in harmony. But when aliens decide to invade their town, the humans blame the vampires for the invasion, and vice versa. Then the zombies want revenge on the humans because of the sudden stoppage of brain supplies, which in turn puts them at war with vampires…just because. Throughout all of this, it takes three teens, one from each group, to put aside their differences and work together to try and fight back against the aliens.

This is not, by any means, a perfect film. Is it watchable? Well, in my perspective, yes. It feels like one of those movies that you would find on the shelf of your local video rental store in the ‘90s, mixed in with other randomly paired together horror films, and you think it would be the perfect movie to take home and watch with your friends during a weekend sleepover. It’s a film that knows what it is, and in that, doesn’t really take itself too seriously. Add in an element of high school teenage drama that was “all the rage” back in the late ‘90s, and you get a film which, as I said, feels like a nostalgia piece, yet modernizes itself in today’s world.

The one thing that truly makes this film stand out is its tremendous cast. While watching it, I constantly found myself amazed by the next person that suddenly popped up on my screen. The three leads are Nicholas Braun as Dag Parker, the human kid who yearns to be one of the “cool kids” in high school. Mackenzie Davis plays Petra Lane, a recently-turned vampire with a weird fixation for the one who turned her. And Josh Fadem as zombie Ned Mosely, the nerdy kid who willingly has himself turned into a zombie since he feels his family doesn’t care as much about him as they do his star athlete brother, and he doesn’t really have friends.

When you look at the supporting cast, it’s virtually a who’s who of comedians and young Hollywood stars. Here’s just a list of some of the supporting players:
-Vanessa Hudgens as Lorelei
-Ed Westwick as Milan Pinache
-Mae Whitman as Jenna (Zombie)
-Denis Leary as Rick Wilson
-Keegan-Michael Key as Mr. Mayhew P. Keller (Vampire)
-Patton Oswalt as Stuart Miller
-Joan Cusack as Peg Parker
-Bob Odenkirk as Shooter Parker
-Werner Herzog as Voice of the Perfect Being

Some of the ideas used in the film are rather head-scratching. The idea that the aliens can’t see organic matter, so the three leads end up walking the empty streets of Dillford naked so as to sneak past undetected was questionable. Although I did snicker at the idea that if you starve a zombie of brains, that somehow causes them to grow smarter. Almost similar of the plot to “Warm Bodies”, if you think about it. And honestly, I could see the surprise twist at the end coming from a mile away. I won’t spoil it for you, but trust me when I say that when it happens, you’ll understand just what was missing.

As I stated earlier, it is in no way a perfect film. It almost seems like something that is just a couple steps above being a made-for-SyFy Saturday night “film”. I use that word loosely when I talk about SyFy Channel programs. It has its problems, it is very messy in different places throughout, and the tone is all over the place. But if you’re looking for something to entertain you or a group of people during a party one night, go ahead and put this on. You might enjoy yourself. Until next time…