Saturday, February 27, 2016

Bloody Burlesque

Director - Patricia Chica (Serpent's Lullaby)
Starring - Tonya Kay (The Lone Ranger), Tiffany Shepis (Bonnie and Clyde vs. Dracula), and Lily Spencer (The Disco Exorcist)
Release Date - 2016
Genre - Horror
Format - Streaming (Online Screener)

Rating (out of 5):
     February is known by the masses as Black History month but to the horror community it is the Women in Horror Month which is kinda dumb to me.  Without women we would not have horror.  They are an important part of the genre and only giving them their credit one month a year is fucking stupid.  Women and men alike deserve to be acknowledged for all their hard work.  Earlier this month director Patricia Chica sent out online screeners to her new short Bloody Burlesque as part of Women in Horror Month.  To be honest, I have never seen a film from Chica but I was open to checking it out to show respect to the women that worked hard on this film...and because I have a huge crush on Tiffany Shepis.
     This short follows a bizarre burlesque act that features a very beautiful blonde (Kay) with words written upon her body.  These are horrible words like "cancer," "infection," "wound," and so on.  She dances around a bit with fire before heading to the main attraction.  She removes her shirt, and while wearing pasties she slowly covers herself in blood until those horrible words are no longer visible on her nearly perfect body.

     Shorts only work when you use what time you have wisely and deliver a story worth watching.  If the story is weak or not properly told in that short amount of time then the viewer will not enjoy themselves.  Sadly, Bloody Burlesque is a super short flick with no story at all.  The acting in this one is solid considering it's really just centered around two cast members.  There is several people in the audience but all they do is make facial expressions.  The only two cast members that do anything is the super beautiful Tiffany Shepis and Tonya Kay.  Shepis is great as the burlesque host and brought about some great atmosphere while Kay is elegant as the burlesque performer covering herself in blood.  Her role was a lot more demanding with the nearly nude dancing.  These two did great.  The story for this one is non-existent.  The film is around 2 minutes and consists of a female announcer announcing a dancer who covers herself in blood.  That is it.  The story is sexy but has nothing of value.  It has no substance but is symbolic in a way.  The blood cleanses the body.  This was a cool concept but was horrible for the center point of a short.  It has nothing to hold the viewer over.  Finally, the film has no on screen kills with amazing practical effects.  No one dies and the only blood comes out of a small bucket and poured over a beautiful blonde.  The title is fitting but makes but the viewer is expecting some gore.  Overall, Bloody Burlesque is a short with potential but fails to capture any of it.  The film is sexy but that is as far as it goes.  No carnage or story for those of us looking for a well rounded horror flick.




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