The Bad Samaritan Must Die

Director(s) - Andrew Leckonby (Fractured Boy, Air) and John Raine (Repercussions)
Starring - John Raine, Nikita Rachel Shepherdson, and John Scott (Electricity)
Release Date - 2012
Genre - Action
Tagline - "Tonight we make history!"
Format - DVD (Personal Collection) (Screener)

Rating (out of 5):

     I've been trying like hell to review a movie a day but sometimes that just doesn't happen with work and home life.  Lately, I've been watching horror flick after horror flick to get out of the rut I dug myself but I needed a break.  I looked at my review stack and found the Wild Eye Releasing film The Bad Samaritan Must Die.  I wanted something fun but wasn't much in a horror mood after spending the last two weeks knocking out review after review.  This one promised some brutality so I wasn't turning my back on carnage.  I just wanted something a little more story driven.  Thank you Wild Eye for sending this one my way!
     The film follows a town torn apart by the masked vigilante known as the Bad Samaritan.  Some people believe he is a menace and want him stopped.  They are extremely vocal about this and rally for his capture and arrest.   There is also a large number of people who support him.  Some support him so much they want to join him in his crusade.  His good intentions quickly spiral out of control and a vigilante cult is born.

   
     I really wanted to like this one.  I always go into a Wild Eye release with excitement but this one just didn't flow that well for me.  There was some things I really enjoyed but a lot of the film fell through the cracks with me.  The acting in this one is fun.  Typically the superhero steals the show but not in this film.  Instead, everyone brings the same intensity to their scenes.  They work well together and create fun atmosphere.  The story for this one is lacking.  It does a great job at establishing the characters and setting the scene but does forget about the overall story.  We get several scenes establishing who is bad and who is good with several other struggles but we never get a point to the vigilante.  We get some petty crime but nothing that warrants a vigilante.  There is no major struggle.  Finally, the film does have some blood.  We get some pretty violent beat downs but the choreography is rather weak.  Instead, we get a lot of camera tricks and cuts to get the desired effect.  There is blood but the effects we get are minimal and not really worth mentioning.  Overall, The Bad Samaritan Must Die has the right idea but falls short.  I could totally see this character becoming something more but this film just couldn't pull it together.  A stronger story is needed.