Revelations

Director - Roger Sampson (Rawhead)
Starring - Gracie Whitton (Scary Movie 5, The Town That Dreaded Sundown), Sheri Davis (Salem), and Lance Eakright (Hell's Fury: Wanted Dead or Alive)
Release Date - 2014
Genre - Horror
Tagline - "Mary has a little secret"
Format - Streaming (online screener)

Rating (out of 5):

     Sometimes a film can surprise you.  Everyone judges a book by it's cover and a film by the film's poster.  This is something I am guilty of and so is everyone else I have met in my short existence.  Hell, half the time I wont buy a movie that is new to me if the poster looks lame or stupid.  However, buying movies that are new because they had amazing posters has lead me down many shitty roads especially after visiting Wal-Mart and buying shitty films I like to call those films Wal-Mart horror.  Anyway, about a month ago (when my laptop shit out on me) director Roger Sampson reached out to me to view his short Revelations.  I am always open to watch movies sent to me by directors but I sometimes draw expectations from the posters and that is what happened here.  I saw the poster for Revelations and it did not impress me.  I still wanted to see it so I put it on my list to review and as soon as I got my laptop running decently I decided to give it a go...and I'm glad I did.

     The film follows Mary (Davis).  Mary, who is sitting with her daughter in the kitchen, answers the phone.  She is speaking with a man and the two talk business for a bit before revealing her husband is away from the home.  The man on the phone then hints around like the two has hooked up in the past and she shrugs it off and ends the conversation with him as her daughter looks at her in curiosity.  She then opens the fridge where we find her husbands severed head and other random body parts before she goes into the garage where she has a bag full of bloody tools.  She then begins to clean her tools as if this is something she has done before and will continue to do as her daughter watches her.

     Shorts are powerful forms of film.  They are able to get an entire story full of action, drama, horror, and suspense into a small amount of time.  Shorts are also easier to watch because they have such a short period of time to hold your attention.  That is what this film does so well.  The film is able to grab your attention and not let go.  The acting in this one is solid.  The only real acting we get is from Sheri Davis who does a great job in her role.  Sadly, the film is so short that we don't get to see what this beautiful little lady is actually capable of.  The story for this one is fun and actually got me with the twist at the end.  I was not expecting for it to take the turn that it did.  That is great film making when you get a film that is able to do that especially in a short period of time.  I would have loved to see what this team could accomplish with this story if it was a feature.  Finally, this film does not offer up any on screen kills.  I would have loved to see a flashback to the man's death.  That is also a little disappointing considering the poster above shows that blood has been shed.  That is not a clear indication of what you will see in the film.   However, we do get some great practical effects and gags that make this film fun.  Overall, Revelations is not the film you expect it to be.  Instead, you get indie film making at it's finest.  Check this one out!