Where do I start with Plank Face? It's so weird that I felt like I needed to share my thoughts but I have no idea where to start. I picked this up at Cinema Wasteland and first I have to say that I don't DISLIKE the film at all. I do not think it's a bad film. Don't let my 5/10 give you the wrong idea, I use the 10 scale where 5 means I'm really in the middle.

The film is about a man who is kidnapped and raped by a feral mountain family with the goal of turning him into their new alpha, except that he is accepts that position in an unbelievably short amount of time. That's technically a spoiler except the back of the box gives it away; it gives only the question "Will he be broken or find their ways alluring?" (leaving out the third option clearly points in the direction they chose). This is where the film loses me most. The main character goes from being tortured, raped, force fed testicles, and treated like a thing yet in the course of what the film makes seem like only a FEW DAYS he totally changes his entire outlook on everything in life, abandoning everything from his past including loved ones he fought so hard to protect just days earlier. Why? Well, who knows. The film definitely doesn't explain his change of attitude. Not only does he join the family, he is totally cool with ALL of them including the ones who tortured him most. I could have bought his turn more if he killed Grandma and The Bride, leaving the only crazy family member who consistently treated him well. As is his disregard for "the old ways" is so jarring and out of nowhere that I could no longer enjoy the story. The way the story was presented to me I did not believe at all why he would suddenly murder innocent people for a family that nailed his feet to the floor and raped him. While on topic of the story the pacing of this felt very off. Act 1 is pretty perfect but after that I quickly found myself bored and distracted, constantly feeling like NOTHING was happening in movie.

Okay so I really disliked the story. What about the rest? Well the lead actor plays his role well. The rest of the family also plays their roles really well, as they were written at least. They're weird, they don't talk, they randomly picked this dude as opposed to any of the dozen of other male victims they've had (who is to say any of the other guys they killed would have been ready to murder?). But again, as they were written, the cast did nail the themes and looks they were aiming for. Full success from all of the actors for the family. Max's girlfriend in the film is given little to do so becomes forgettable to me and we get a fantastic cameo from Dave Parker who is also given little but elevates his creep factor to 11.

If you are expecting a slasher film, which would be fair given the cover and the trailer, you will be let down. There are only a few kills in the film and they're okay. However this is NOT a slasher film and isn't really meant to be, it's a psychological horror. It's meant to make you uncomfortable, which it does in spades. The gore factor here is unimportant, but if that's what you want there is little to have.

I know I'm speaking a lot of ill but I have to also say the following positives: The film LOOK amazing. It's well shot, well lit, and just the overall cinematography is great. The music is probably my favorite music in a horror film in recent memory. The creepy synths and slow beats compliment the film in a really beautiful way and when the story was losing me, the music usually roped me back in. Brian Williams did multiple things on this film, but deserves (in my opinion) the largest praise possible for the score.

So is Plank Face bad? Not at all, regardless of how the first chunk of my review read. Now I do absolutely think the script has some major problems with story telling and showing the main character's arc and that's a big deal to me. But the other bits really come down to pure subjectivity: This is CLEARLY not my kind of film. I am not the target audience for Plank Face at all. I prefer light, fun horror and this was a harsh, visceral, psychological story which is well shot, well acted, and very well scored.

Do I still think it has some major script issues? Yes, I can love films in genres I don't enjoy if the story is strong. However, the film DOES do so much else SO RIGHT that if you're a fan of deeper, darker, more serious horror you will very likely enjoy the film.

I recommend the film for those people that this sounds appealing to, I am confident that you will love it. But it was a mixed bag for me.

It seems like there is horror to be found everywhere nowadays. No, I am not making a comment on the 6:00 news (though there is plenty of horror there as well),I mean the horror genre. Even 15 years ago, most horror fans got their horror at the local theater. If you were lucky enough to live close to a city, there was usually one that showed underground horror. Most often, you picked up a DVD at Blockbuster and hoped it didn't suck. There wasn't any real forum to discuss and share movies and there certainly weren't streaming sites. So much is different now, with the explosion of sites like that offer streaming movies, some even catering specifically to the horror fan. Conventions give indie filmmakers the chance to push their latest film.

Where once you had trouble finding something new and exciting, now it can be hard to wade through the mass of directors promoting their film on your social media feed and trying to decide what is worth your time. FAR too often, most of these indie films are just generic rehashes of things you have seen a hundred times over and offer nothing original, but there are movies that show some real talent and the work of actors and directors who show real promise. This is one of those movies. I am not going to tell you it's perfect, or even great, but it's good and that's more than can be said for most of what I see in the reviews column of your favorite horror magazine anymore.

Director Scott Schirmer's work is picking up a lot of buzz in the horror communities that I hang around and there is good reason for it if this movie is any indication. It's mostly another variation on the Sawney Bean story, which has been done to death in horror and one of the biggest negatives (to me) about this movie. A group of backwoods cannibals murder campers who have encroached on their territory. Only this one is different. We have three women and their man. In our opening murder scene, the man is injured, leaving a gap in the family. The matron of the family must find them another protector, so they kidnap a camper and begin the process of breaking him down and inducting him into their family.

It is this angle on the storyline that makes this unique. Yes, we get a few murders and some campers die along the way. We have plenty of cannibalism, as well. These scenes are not the main focus of the film, though. This is far from being THE HILLS HAVE EYES or WRONG TURN. Instead, the movie plays along an almost psychological edge. The bulk of the movie is about the three women slowly breaking the man down, ridding him of his taboos, breaking him of his dominance and ultimately trying to eliminate his past and his self, as he becomes one of their clan.

I am not going to get on my soapbox and preach about supporting indie horror. I recognize that there are plenty of people who just don't like it and don't get it. If you are going to judge the movie on its' budget limitations, or some occasionally stilted acting, then there's probably another CONJURING clone that you can find to watch. I'm not going to tell you this is a masterpiece, but this is a director who clearly has a good eye for shots and angles and interesting film making technique. These are actors and crew clearly devoted to making a good movie with something different to say. While absolutely not a movie for the squeamish or the prudish, if you dig indie horror, give this a chance.

Somewhat uniu horror story regarding some backwoods psuedo female cannibals who want to covert a long heaired stud to thier ewird ways.

The character with the rabbit mask sort of detracts from the story because the mask is plastic and clearly from Halloween.

The cannibals (at least i think they are cannibals -- they seem to have eaten part of the original Plank Man) speak a language that is not english.

They basically threaten him with nailing parts of his body to the floor boards when he doesnt comply.

What makes no sense about movies like this is what happens when reality comes in? Like when he has to poop. I mean eventually he has to right? Plus there is no thought about a festering wound from using giant rusty nails.

Maybe I'm being picky. Overall it's an interesting concept that is way too slow and sort of takes way to long to get where it's going. However after quite a bit of torture he does get to have a nice BJ by one of the hotter chicks who then mounts him.

Rabbit mask chick -- whose body is even hotter moutns him later but somehow he doesnt like it so he rapes her. Make sense? Didnt think so.

I guess there are advantages to being a Plank Face. Except the director/writer who is a woman tells you where her sick head is REALLY at by the meals she keeps making old Plankie eat.