Title: The Burrowers
Directed by: J.T. Petty (Blood Red Earth, Mimic: Sentinel)
Starring: Doug Hutchison (Punisher: War Zone), Clancy Brown (Conan: Red Nails), William Mapother (Prison Break: The Final Break).
Scores: Technical: 75, Story: 90, Acting: 90, Overall: 85
The Burrowers really interested me when I first started hearing about it. A western/horror?? I thought it could go one of two ways; a well-written western with a lame horror sub-plot or a blood and guts horror pretending to take place in cowboy times. They took the best aspects of both and made an surprisingly original western/horror. Who woulda thunk it?
The film begins when a family disappears from their home. A band of courageous men set out to find them before the natives kill them, or so they think. As the group prepares for a routine battle, they soon discover that the real enemy is not who they think. For some reason, I had a hard time getting into the movie at first. It wasn’t bad, it just wasn’t grabbing me. That all changed about a quarter of the way through. First off, the filming was beautifully done. J.T. Petty did an amazing job with the writing and directing. The special effects could have been a little better and some of the scenes seemed a little over the top but, name one good horror movie that is not over the top at some point, That’s what makes them classics. The acting was great, especially Doug Hutchison (Lost, Green Mile). That guy is one of the most underrated actors ever. Anyone who can make you hate them as much as he does, deserves some credit. He played Percy Wetmore in The Green Mile who, is one of the most dispicable characters in the history of cinema. He is just as bad in The Burrowers. He plays the racist torturer Captain Henery Victor, who leads the trek to find the missing family.
All together the movie really exceeded my expectations. Very well done. I definitely think anyone who is looking for an fresh kind of horror flick will enjoy The Burrowers.
Surprisingly enough, I did.
By Dave Minyard
