Science fiction can usually be split up into two sub-genres. One genre deals with the extremely abnormal, such as 50 foot women, space spiders the size of dump-trucks, people who can make your head explode with your mind, and any futuristic event involving spaceships. You know, fun stuff like Godzilla and Scanners and Star Wars and Star Trek and Flash Gordon. Then there is the less extravagant, but much scarier sub-genre involving the evolution of humanity, asking questions about the future of politics, corporations, religion, and ethics. It’s the sort of mind-blowing science fiction that is found in books like “1984” by George Orwell, “Brave New World” by Aldus Huxley, and “Fahrenheit 451” by Ray Bradbury, along with movies like Ridley Scott’s Blade Runner, Terry Gilliam’s Brazil, and Kurt Wimmer’s Equilibrium.
With the coming release of Apocalypse Kiss, written, directed, and much, much more by Christian Grillo, we are given another piece of the forbidden future with a film that incorporates the styles of both film noir and science fiction into a thought-provoking and entertaining movie.
Apocalypse Kiss is science fiction film noir that follows the entanglement of 4 characters: Katia (played by Carmela Hayslett), a female drifter fighting to survive; Adrian (played by D.C. Douglas), a highly respected analyst for the company that controls everything that has OCD and the wish to be known to the world; Jerry Hipple (played by Tom Detrik), an agent/detective trying to make sense of crime; and, to blow your minds, the planet Earth and its inhabitants, which must come to terms with its impending doom. With a serial killer on the loose and fighting for the limelight in a city plagued with crime, these and other characters must come to terms with their own demons before it’s too late.
Official Synopsis : Adrian, a serial killer with O.C.D. fights for his place in the media while two nomadic lesbians are getting the credit for his murders. Meanwhile, the world as they know it is about to come to an end.
The power of this film doesn’t stem from special effects like the more boisterous sci-fi films involving giant mutants and aliens. The gas-masked enforcers are pretty cool along with the alcove of The Wizard, but the power lies in hinting at where we are as a species, and what this could ultimately lead to. The Wizard (played by Brian Anthony Wilson) does a great job as a Macbethian witch, foreshadowing the end-game for the film and even the entire planet.
Other featured actors include Tom Atkins, Lloyd Kaufman with a brilliant role as the President, and Michael Berryman as the seemingly corporate puppeteer, which is highly satirical considering Berryman’s physique and past roles is not usually in line with the epitome of human beauty. It’s not a bad thing. It’s an amazingly dark thing.
Apocalypse Kiss is set to hit DVD and digital shelves on April 8th.
[…] With Apocalypse Kiss, I saw the film before I got an interview with the film’s director, Christian Grillo. Suffice to say, I enjoyed the movie that much. You can read all about my thoughts on Apocalypse Kiss here. […]