Absolute Evil

Anyone associated with this film should be extremely embarrassed if not heartily ashamed of themselves. I refer especially to director Uli Lommel, and recognised actor David Carradine (of Kill Bill fame), both of whom should know much better than to sign their names to this steaming pile of trash. The film’s title could well be a reference to this kind of take-the-money –and-run cinema, which makes a mockery of all the talented filmmakers and actors out there who will never be given the opportunity that these two so callously throw away.

A brief précis for those of you who (somehow!) remain undeterred: the story centres on a damaged young woman (Carolyn Neff) whose father was killed 15 years ago by a notorious gang of armed robbers. Having found romance and some semblance of happiness with a new man at last, she returns to her home in Texas searching for closure on her father’s death.

Surprise, surprise; nothing is as it seems and her happiness is soon to be shattered when the man she loves is killed and the 'truth' starts to unravel. A word of warning for anyone who is unable to detect the fountain of gushing sarcasm here: there is some ‘plot’ in and among the gaping holes but you have to look very hard to find it and you have to look even harder to find any coherence in the actions of the main characters.

The acting throughout is nothing short of woeful, the script left me with the distinct impression it had been written by someone who’d been drafted in for work experience and was taking revenge for having been forced to clean the toilets, and the production values fell well short of the mediocrity you'd expect from a daytime soap opera or even a low-budget porn film.

Against my better judgement I’ve given the film a whole star (one more than it deserves!) for the occasional directorial flourishes which at least suggest it was not actually made by someone who’d never seen a film before, and for the moments of comedy value when the performances reach the it’s-so-bad-it’s-funny stage. This single star aside, if there's one film you avoid this year, make it Absolute Evil.