Redpatch, Ohio doesn’t get many visitors, so burned-out diner owner Lamont Guest can’t help but notice the steely-eyed stranger sneaking into his father’s funeral. His name is Belko, and he knows it wasn’t an animal that did the job – it was a vampire. The good news is Belko hunts vampires. The bad news is he can’t do it alone anymore. They’ll have to turn the undead tide together before the town runs red with more than rust.
Jeremy Herbert, Mark Kelly, and Morgan McLeod have been pillars of the indie horror community for what seems like ages. I was reviewing Herbert’s short films as far back as 2018, with The Thing About Beecher’s Gate and The Things With the Glowing Green Eyes being among my favourite short films of—well, ever. Needless to say, I had a touch of bias going into their first full-length feature film, Blood and Rust.
The film follows Lamont (McLeod) as he comes to terms with the passing of his father. His time for grieving is short-lived as Belko (Kelly) arrives in town to deal with the current infestation of undead that the townsfolk seem mostly oblivious to. What ensues is a team-up against the forces of evil where an old slayer needs to train a new, slightly awkward protege.
The film sticks strongly to Herbert’s signature style of dark, awkward comedy that isn’t quite laugh-out-loud and definitely very tongue-in-cheek. The deliveries are purposely deadpan, and the “that makes sense” reactions regarding the vampires really carry the film’s whimsical nature. Lamont’s attempts to make light of serious situations, especially macabre ones, fuel his self-deprecating nature. This gallows humour is not going to be appreciated by everyone, probably due to its subtlety. I loved it.
The film is not without its themes, either. Aside from the more obvious nods to regret, both with Lamont’s father and love interest (Diana Frankhauser as Marlene), there are the failings of the town itself, the growing endemic of homelessness, the poor treatment of veterans, and the old tale of the police enforcing the will of the ruling classes over the interests of the people. I’m sure that there was some metaphor for vampirism or their blood being a red dust instead of liquid, but I just chalked that off to a cool effect.
Speaking of effects, they were decent enough for an indie horror passion project. Some of the makeup could have been a bit cleaner, particularly the white-faced vampires. The final act has some great swordplay and vampire-vanquishing effects, and the rest of it was clever angles and impressive practical effects. True indie-film experts stretching those dollars to where they are needed most. The film is well edited and is paired with a whimsical score of non-typical synths and sound effects, also typical of Herbert’s previous productions.
The acting was far better than your typical B-production, with Kelly, McLeod, and Frankhauser really bringing great chemistry to the screen. Ross Partridge (The Boss) also does a pretty decent interpretation of a Dracula-esque figure. I’ve always loved McLeod’s acting skills so—again—my bias might be sneaking through a bit here, but this man deserves more recognition than he gets. People are sleeping on his skills.
My only real gripe would be that the film is slow for what it is. It is a Salem’s Lot plot, but in a burned-out small town. The characters are all very nonchalant about what’s happening, taking the whole “we could die at any second” story with very little sense of urgency. In fact, the vampires are often little more than an inconvenience, which I suppose is part of the charm. And no one ever questions why they explode into Shichimi Togarashi when killed, but it did make me somewhat hungry. The film runs a near-clean 1 hour 30 so I suppose the pacing is fine. I just would have liked a little more action in my horror/comedy/romance.
Thanks for reading and as always, stay sordid. Definitely give this one a watch and support indie filmmakers. The crew behind this one deserve all the praise and spare pennies you can throw their way. We need more people in the industry making good indie horror and Herbert does just that. Blood and Rust is available now on digital streaming platforms. Artwork and trailer are included as per usual.
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