Killers (Director’s Cut): Blu-Ray Review
Mike Mendez’s 1996 directorial debut, Killers arrived on Blu-ray for the very first time in the U.S. this week and the gritty horror-crime-thriller has 90’s written all over it (in the best way possible). From the blue tinted presentation, the ultra-violent gunplay and of course it is laced with psychotic sexuality, the filmmaker delivered one hell of a low-budget introduction, inspired by the works of its’ time. Killers is a very obscure film and much like The Convent, (released a few years later), I had never seen this film before now.
The James Brothers, Odessa (Dave Larsen) and Kyle (David Gunn) were sent to prison and sentenced to death after murdering their parents with a couple of shotguns. The sibling killers managed to escape death row on a stormy night, taking out some guards in the process. While on the run, they decide to hideout in a suburban family home (with a family still inside). The Ryan family seems to be a normal bunch. Charles (Burke Morgan) loves his wife Rea (Damian Hoffer). He enjoys playing a game of go-fish with his youngest daughter Jami (Nanette Bianchi) and his teenage daughter, Jenny (Renee Cohen) is the apple of his eye.
Things don’t seem to be going Charles’ way. While being tied up by Odessa and Kyle, he is forced to not only watch his wife be seduced by Odessa, but listen to his older daughter have sex with Kyle James upstairs. However, what the James Brothers do not realize is that the Ryans are not who they appear to be, and they might have been better off finding shelter elsewhere. Pretty soon it is the Ryans vs the James along with a police force and a few other surprises. Mendez borrows from numerous films here, including a personal favorite, The People Under the Stairs. Though there are quite a few familiar elements, the director knows how to blend them together and make completely his own.
As a genre fan, I love discovering something from a filmmaker that I am familiar with yet had never gotten around to checking out in the past. This week I got to take in two of Mike Mendez’s earlier films and they were both truly wonderful surprises. If you are a fan of 90’s ultra stylized violence with a dash of wicked humor, I highly recommend checking out Killers.
Bonus Materials:
- Audio commentary with director Mike Mendez and horror scholar Michael Gingold
- Original promotional trailers
- Liner notes booklet by critic/writer Heather Drain
- Alternate Ending
- English subtitles for the deaf and hard-of-hearing
By Marc Ferman