The Violent Kind

A group of three best friends, who also belong to a biker gang, set out for a good time at a secluded house, only to be bombarded by a series of odd events, including some supernatural entities.

When searching through my local video store, The Violent Kind seemed to glare at me throughout my entire visit, as if it was a film I must see. The DVD cover presents the movie with a bad-ass look, while the entire premise and plot synopsis located on the rear of said DVD looks super intriguing, even after viewing the film. As I read it, I began visualizing certain aspects of other films that looked similar, sort of combining them together, creating the film myself. The Violent Kind looks like The Devil’s Rejects mixed with Sons of Anarchy, so I concluded what it would end up as, and rented it. Most of the time, a film in which you ponder on too much results in disappointment. The more someone tells you how great something is, that it’s the best thing since sliced bread, the higher your expectations will go up. Same goes with you’re thought process, in that the more you dwell on how good, bad, or weird a film may be, the more you’re brain analyzes it, and sometimes that happens to me too much, reaching a level of fogginess inside the brain. I’ve been trying to limit that as of late.

With The Violent Kind, the brain isn’t really a necessity. The whole premise begins rather interesting, introducing us to a pretty hardcore biker gang, which the three main characters are a part of. All the actors are unknowns to me, and only a select few put up solid performances, mostly to the part of the “leading man” Cody. (The guy must be Hayden Christensen’s twin, I swear.) Other than him, a rather decent acting show by Cody’s best friend, and a couple of the “villains”, the acting is very inadequate, as the rest are just you’re typical low-budget cardboard cutouts. Including an absolutely dreadful performance by a character named Megan, which was almost unbearable to watch. This film was directed by the Butcher brothers, a filmmaking duo in which I’d never even heard of until recently. The Duplass brothers come to mind in terms of low budget, up and coming directors, but they have the Butchers beat by a mile. Needless to say, I’m skeptical on whether or not to give these guys another try.

The plot then proceeds with the gang taking a little trip up to a secluded house, in which has been used as a party hangout for years by the gang’s friends and family. It’s now been, in so many words, passed down to the next generation. The filming locations and dark atmosphere are the film’s strengths, at least for most the duration. The cinematographer probably could’ve chosen a higher budget film that maybe would have attracted more viewers, not to mention a theatrical release. You know the campy, corny feeling these low-budget rip-offs present, as you know each and every scene ahead of time, can predict deaths, character emotion etc. That’s The Violent Kind in a nutshell, but not as bad as others due to a great attempt at a VERY clever and intriguing concept. More experienced filmmakers could’ve done big things with this project. Instead, it results in a forgettable, very disposable, very cheesy, very rushed horror/thriller with virtually no redeeming value. There are some fun-to-watch scenes, including two very well choreographed fight sequences that look as they are real, something not many films contain. Not to mention some very good-looking special effects when necessary. Saying exactly when said special effects are used would be a complete spoiler. But horror fanatics will most likely be impressed. Overall, The Violent Kind has a crap load of potential. The actors aren’t too bad, the premise is rather unique, and the atmosphere really blends perfectly with what the director was going for. Unfortunately, The Violent Kind is far too generic, clichéd and predictable, and almost completely fails to capitalize on it’s potential. Not wholly recommended, as it’s barely even worthwhile as a time passer.

4.7/10