The Carnage Collection

Director(s) - Bob Ferreira, Derek Ferreira, and Kimball Rowell
Starring - Tiera Colette, Derek Ferreira, and Bob Ferreira
Release Date - 2015
Genre - Horror
Format - DVD (Personal Collection)

Rating (out of 5):

     The indie horror community is massive and you have to know where to look to find new films.  I mostly discover movies through Facebook and the various groups that I am a member of.  There is probably a dozen or so of these groups but the downside to these is that they all have the same members so the same movies get cross promoted.  One film that I remember seeing in most of these groups and not much elsewhere was the horror anthology The Carnage Collection from Point and Shoot Films.  I shared some news regarding this film several times on the site and was very interested in the film but movies sent my way for review took precedent over movies that I watch just for the hell of it.  I decided to move this one onto my review list after some heckling from one of the co-directors.  Hey Bob, fuck you.

     The film consists of several segments ranging from killer VCR's to gypsy zombies.  The first story, Slay Bells, follows a young man who is trying to borrow a VCR from a friend.  He friend goes to the shed to get it when he is attacked and killed by a Santa display.  When his friend visits the shed to find him he comes face to face with the plastic evil Cringle.  The second segment, Trip, follows a young man who is trying to score some weed when he visits the wrong drug dealer.  What he found was not your typical drug dealer.  The third story, VCR, is easily my favorite of the film.  This segment follows a young man who is striking out with the ladies.  "Big Dick" Doug just can not find a break so he has resorted to fucking his trusty VCR until one day it has had enough and bites his dick off.  The fourth story, M is for Marijuana, is another one of my favorite segments and follows two stoners who purchase weed for an old gypsy that turns them into pot zombies.  The next tale, The Clown Cried Blood, follows a killer clown that butchers a family before moving on to two young women who are walking through the woods.  Angel of Death is the next story that follows a man who no longer wants to live.  He tries several times to kill himself but is met with a mysterious man who tells him God has other plans.  The man then believes God has bigger things in store for him but he is dead wrong.

     I was honestly looking forward to checking this one out.  The trailer, which I watched sometime ago, was fucking bonkers and looked like it was made specifically for me.  I love oddball no budget horror films and Carnage Collection looked like a love letter to everything I admire in b-movies...and for the most part it was.  The acting in this one is indie quality.  The cast is very dedicated to their roles but they lack the experience necessary to make their interactions with one another feel genuine and authentic.  With some practice and a little more experience I am fully confident that they all can make a name for themselves among horror fans but as it stands some of the scenes are a little awkward to watch.  The story for each segment varies.  Some are tributes to classic monster movies and horror films that I grew up watching while a few others not that entertaining.  The worst segment in the film is Trip.  This POV segment was not that entertaining and the film would have benefited from cutting this one out.  However, the segments VCR and M for Marijuana were awesome and could have inspired feature length films in one way or another.  These were fun and made for fans of b-movies.  With that being said, anthologies are expected to have a wrap around segment that serves as bookends for every story.  The Carnage Collection skips that for the most part.  The film opens with a door to door salesman installing cable for someone but this was not touched on between each segment and feels like it was abandoned early on in the film.  It could have worked with some minor changes or even showing the young man changing channels between each segment.  Could you imagine Creepshow 2 without the Creep?  Finally, the film has a fair amount of blood and gore.  The effects are dictated by the film's budget but they are able to make it work.  The kills are fun, or funny depending on the segment, and the effects really add to the overall look of the film.  Overall, The Carnage Collection is a no budget masterpiece.  It is rough around the edges and could use some work but God Damn does it have heart.  Flaws aside this is some indie horror fun that should be watched.