Starring - Jeremy King (Terminal Kill), Courtney Hans (Parkland), and Dashiell Smith (Beneath the Trees)
Release Date - 2013
Genre - Horror, Comedy
Tagline - "They pug their own grave"
Format - Streaming (Online Screener)
Rating (out of 5):
I absolutely love short films. When they are done right they can get to the point so much faster and cut out a lot of filler without wasting your time. That is why I think horror shorts are so effective. They establish characters, hit you with the humor if there is any, and then slaps you in the face with the murder and gore. That is one of the few reason I jump at the chance to review a horror short. Recently I was asked to review the short The El Chupugcabra and the name sold me on it. I love cryptozoology and any humerus play on a cryptozoological creature is begging for me to watch it. I had no idea what the film was about so I sat down to watch it only to be surprised.
The film follows a picture perfect family as they head out to adopt a dog. The young boy found a pug online and fell in love with it so they venture out to retrieve the pooch. However, once inside the dog pound the family is warned by a crazy young lady with stringy hair that the pug will be the end of them all. The family disregards the woman's warning and adopts the pug. They take the happy little fella home with them and that night have a small family gathering and roast marshmallows. Big mistake! They mistakenly give the little tike a marshmallow transforming him into a man-sized pug. El Chupugcabra goes on a murderous rampage killing the family and friends.
Most shorts are able to accomplish what most features do but do so in a manner that it does not waste the viewers time. That is exactly what this film did. If gave me everything I really enjoy in a horror comedy in a fraction of the time. This movie has some great humor and a storyline that left a smile on my face from beginning to end and then showed me it could be a real horror film and delivered some great kills. The acting in this one is spectacular by the entire cast. The cast consists of faces that are new to me but I would really like to see them in more horror and horror comedies. The story is nothing detailed or compelling but it is fun as hell. Sadly, the story could be extended to be one hell of a feature film and slasher. It is a great short but I did not want it to end so I would love to see a sequel or turned into a feature. Finally, the last half of the short is a blood bath that sports some decent special effects and great kills. The special effects are nothing when compared to the great slasher kills seen in some of the best 80s slasher films but for this film they worked perfectly. Overall, this film is ridiculous and fun as hell. I highly recommend it. 
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