This Canadian film, also known as HEMOGLOBIN, is written by the team of Dan O’Bannon and Ron Shusett (together they penned the genre classics ALIEN and RETURN OF THE LIVING DEAD), and is an uncredited, loose adaptation of H.P. Lovecraft’s The Lurking Fear. Thrown in to the mix is an unhealthy dose of incest and hedonism. The inimitable Rutger Hauer (BLADE RUNNER) gets star billing although he only has a supporting role as the town’s drunken physician, Dr. Marlow. His performance is campy, but entertaining. The forgettable leads are Roy Dupuis as John Strauss and Kristin Lehman as his wife.

John Strauss has a rare blood disorder, and along with his wife, visit Vancouver Canada in hopes they can find some clues about his ailment. Since his family heritage resides there, perhaps there may be some medical records of his ancestors. John, who has no memory of his family, searches the island to try to find out who his parents were, and why he has his problems. Meanwhile some bodies of the locals start turning up.

Some flashbacks reveal that John’s ancestors, the Van Damme family, were wealthy, good looking, and snobby. So snobby in fact that they only had sex with other family members. This inbreeding caused a mutation that would evolve generations later into dwarfish flesh eating mutations. These mutations now inhabit catacomb-like series of tunnels on the islands coastline. The mutants remind me of Belial from the BASKETCASE series, but more anatomically realistic.

One of the towns people (and later victims) discovers the corpse of one of the mutations, and takes the grotesque body to Dr. Marlowe. By performing an explicit autopsy on it, Dr. Marlowe discovers that the sex of the mutant has both male and female sex organs. The final act has a NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD style assault that has John, his wife, and the townspeople trapped in a lighthouse by the besieged mutant population. The final attack takes place in the underground tunnels were John feels compelled to join his brethren. I won’t reveal the twist ending, but it is quite sick.

The film itself is a mixed bag, but it does offer some repulsive thrills, intrigue, and good special effects by Adrien Morot. Standout scenes include the lighthouse attack, the catacombs chase, and the flashback sequences. One unnerving aspect of the mutants is that they are played by paraplegics in well-designed make-up and many of them walk on their hands or just wobble about.

SIGHT

Barry Gravelle’s cinematography comes through clear and polished. The Vancouver locations look glossy and crisp. Not bad at all for a full-frame film. The dark scenes are lit enough to see what is going on including the murky underground tunnels and mansion interiors. The exterior scenes are excellent and the colors are deep and right on. I prefer letterboxed images, but this full frame transfer is not bad at all. I’m not sure what it was shot in and the IMDB doesn’t know either.

SOUND

Kudos to Simitar for doing a Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack. It really enhances the DVD presentation, just don’t expect ARMAGEDDON style sound effects. The ambiance effects are nice with ocean water, birds and bugs, screams, etc coming through on the surrounds. The uncredited Twin Peaks-style soundtrack comes through nicely and reinforces the film eerie moods. Dialogue sounds natural and is limited to the center channel. Simitar also includes a Dolby Pro Logic remix. You can switch back between the DD Pro Logic and the DD 5.1 during the movie by pressing your audio button.

CONCLUSION

A bizarre low budget film that’s slow at times but delivers in the second half. The acting all around is TV movie caliber, but the authentic locations more than make up for that. Slick production from Simitar makes this one worth a rental. Or, this low priced DVD can probably be purchased on the web for about 9 dollars.

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