SYNOPSIS: Abe Van Helsing, the wayward descendant of the vampire hunter clan, enlists the services of a teen to house sit while he travels, unwittingly putting the stored corpse of Dracula in less than prepared hands.
While more comedy than horror and with more caricatures than characters, Dracula’s Coffin makes no attempts to shy away from what it is: a fangtastic romp with old protagonists reimagined in slightly absurd ways. It’s a silly—almost slapstick—play on the Dracula/Hellsing mythos and very entertaining if you are privy to the jokes.
The short film stars Sarah Pohl as Josie, Tim Robinson as Freddy, and Justin Herman as the infamous Count. I need to also mention Matt Baca as Abe Van Hellsing as he—while only in the film for a few scenes—really sets the tone of the humour and does a good job or foreshadowing what’s to come. While utterly over-the-top, his smutty one-liners got me to crack a smile, which is no menial task. The plot centers around Josie and Freddy as two simple but kind of likeable (in that Dumb and Dumber kinda way) house sitters who unintentionally wake Dracula, and the antics that follow thereafter.
The set work and lighting were pretty atmospheric for this indie production, as were the practical effects and makeup. There were also some clever uses of spacing and camera angles and the score is funky, chunky and catchy. This is definitely one of those short films that would walk away with an award or three from a festival for the technical savvy alone, but that’s not all it’s got going for it.
While I’m not really all that big of a fan of comedy/horror, this was genuinely hilarious. Sure, some of the jokes are a bit campy and some totally crass, but sometimes a good dose of silly is good for one’s soul (or whatever demons dwell within). Pohl really managed to keep me grinning throughout the film and I found her very watchable, Harley accent and all.
There is no real deeper meaning or clever plot devices…no existential questions asked or subversive political messages. There’s a bit of playful feminism at the end which but saying more would be require me to attach a spoiler warning. Let’s just say that this is a fun watch start to finish; campy, kinky, and crass. Catch it at a festival near you. It is Spooktober after all. Thanks for reading and as always, stay sordid. Poster below.
