Dark Zone Thirteen

Director(s) - Filip Hanzek, Joe Sherlock (Odd Noggins, Odder Noggins), and Jon Stone (The Last Temptation of Bible Boy)

Starring - Jason Aguayo (Purgatopia), Dee Alsman (Twisted Fates, Underbelly), and Mitch Archibald 

Release Date - 2019

Genre - Horror

Format - Streaming (Online Screener)

Rating (out of 5):

     I’m in the middle of another Skullface Astronaut marathon thanks to filmmaker Joe Sherlock. Sometime back Joe was kind enough to send over a dozen or so of his films and I’ve been slowly working my way through them all. This time I decided to check out three or four of them before moving on to a few other films in my stack for review. After watching his 2013 slasher Blood Creek Woodsmen I decided it was time to check out Dark Zone Thirteen. Like always, I want to thank Joe for sending this one over for review! 

      The film features segments from the long lost 13th issue of Dark Zone that is said to have never been released due to a curse. Each segment features secret organizations involved in the occult, haunted houses, aliens, and a killer doll. 

      Honestly, this is another Skullface Astronaut release that I did not know was an anthology prior to watching it. I love anthology flicks especially indie produced anthologies so I was very excited once I realized that this was one. I enjoyed the segments in this one for the most part but like most indie anthologies, some are better than others. The acting in this one is a little more grounded than other Skullface Astronaut films but the characters are a little more over the top than films like Blood Creek Woodsman. I liked the characters and the casting which worked well with the film. The cast is fairly inexperienced but they did a solid job with their roles and didn’t over do it with the humor. The stories for this one is a little uneven but that is expected from an indie anthology with various directors at the helm of each segment. I did like a majority of the segments in this one. My favorite was from director Filip Hanzek. I loved the atmosphere and cliched story involving the unsuspecting home owners moving into a haunted house. The anthology offers up a lot of different shorts ranging from the above mentioned haunted house, to killer dolls, aliens, the occult and government conspiracies. It’s a wide range of horror but some are more enjoyable than others. Finally, the film has a lot of blood, some cheap effects, and some nudity. While the deaths are nothing spectacular, the nudity more than makes up for it. Overall, Dark Zone Thirteen is another frightfully fun anthology in the Skullface Astronaut catalogue. Check it out.