Snuffet

Director - Dustin Mills (Easter Casket, Bath Salt Zombies)
Starring - Brandon Salkil (Her Name Was Torment, Zombie A-Hole), Janet Jay (Easter Casket, Revenge of the Spacemen), and Dustin Mills.
Release Date - 2014
Genre - Horror/Exploitation
Tagline(s) -  "His wrath will be felt" and "His judgement will be felt"
Format - Streaming (online screener)

Rating (out of 5):

     In the indie world filmmakers often find their own little niche in which they excel.  Some are good at making bloody and gory films while others are exceptionally well at making comedies with superb stories. However, we rarely get a filmmaker who can make visually stunning films like Dustin Mills.  His films are visually appealing which is refreshing when you typically watch films that look like they were made on less than $100 (most of the time they are).  Dustin has now changed things up a bit and turned away from the films he is known for and started making films that appeal to his underground horror fans.  These films are rough and are typically not as polished as his DMP films.  These films will be released under his new production company amply labeled Crumpleshack Films.  The first, Her Name Was Torment, was a great film but was not as good as his DMP films.  For his second outing for CF he returned to puppets which is what his fans have been begging for.  This film, Snuffet, really got me excited.  I can't remember the last time I was excited for a film's release but Mills was able to evoke that emotion.  I ordered the film and was waiting for it to arrive this week sometime but Dustin surprised me with a screener link.  Thanks Dustin!
     The film follows the leader of an underground group known as The Flame who is anti-puppet.  They believe that God made man in his image which makes puppets an abomination.  He created an online community where he posts videos and rants about the superiority of man over puppet but after ten years he has decided to step it up a notch.  He kidnaps a puppet and then kills him on camera.  He then performs an autopsy on the dead creature before uploading the video.  This attracts a young woman who shares the same beliefs as him.  She creates a video confessing her loyalty to him and he invites her over.  The two, donning a pig and frog mask, go on a killing spree killing puppets and puppet fuckers alike.  She kills the puppets because she believes it is the right thing to do but he is killing them because he has a deep, dark secret.
      With Crumpleshack, Mills wants to make films that can assault your senses and leave you feeling uncomfortable.  With Her Name Was Torment he succeeded but I wasn't sure how he would be able to pull of that same feat with puppets.  However, after seeing the film I can say that he did, indeed, pull that off.  The acting in this one is among the best I have seen in an indie film.  I have said this before about Mills and his films.  That is because he often casts the amazing Brandon Salkil as his lead and once again Salkil knocked it out of the park.  His on screen presence is always dominating which is why he is one of my favorite indie actors.  I always look forward to seeing him in any film.  Janet Jay also provided a solid performance but it was sadly overshadowed by Salkil's.  The story for this one is batshit crazy.  The film is able to go over the top while staying grounded.  We do have puppets but the film is done in such a way that it does draw on your emotions.  The puppets could easily be replaced by someone that is homosexual, transgendered, or even a minority.  The film is really a satire at it's finest.  With that being said, the story is a bit on the slow side which makes it hard to stay focused at times.  Finally, this film does not have the visual effects that we all love.  Instead, the film relies on beautiful cinematography and an unnerving story.  Overall, Snuffet is a unique film that shows you the darker side of humanity.  This is one sick and depraved film.