Savage Creatures

Sometimes a killer hook is all that a movie needs to entice an unsuspecting viewer, and writer-director Richard Lowry’s Savage Creatures has precisely such a hook. In a remote mountain town, Darby (Ryan Quinn Adams) and Liz (Cean Okada) pick up two hitchhikers. Ursula (Victoria Steadman) and Rose (Kelly Brown) happily accept the couple’s charity, which includes taking them home for dinner.

That is meant literally, as Darby and Liz are cannibals. But, unbeknownst to the couple, the hitchhikers are vampires. And wouldn’t you know it, all of this happens on the same day that aliens invade Earth, creating zombies along the way, because why not? Now, the deadly entities dive into a battle royale that can have only one victor to claim the Earth.

“…the deadly entities dive into a battle royale that can have only one victor to claim the Earth.”

Yes, seriously, Lowry’s latest b-movie opus is cannibals fighting vampires fighting zombies fighting aliens. If that sounds appealing to you, then I am pleased to announce that Savage Creatures, while flawed, is terrific fun. For starters, Lowry does not let the audience catch their breath once the action begins, which is just mere minutes in. His directing matches the outlandish premise perfectly, with lots of dynamic camera movements. That energy never leaves the film, making for a rather enthralling watch.

The editing, also credited to Richard Lowry, is excellent. When the vampires use crossbows to attack the aliens (just roll with it), there is never confusion over where they are versus the extraterrestrial invaders, versus who is firing at what. The momentum is unrelenting, and the film never drags. Helping right along is Richard Lowry’s score, which is quite exciting. The Morricone inspired music that is the theme to the pistol-packin’ Sister Gigi (Kannon Smith), adds another layer of ridiculous voltage to the whole production.

One of the elements that allow Savage Creatures to remain so absorbing for its entire runtime is how committed the actors. They all know what sort of lunacy they are in, play directly to that same level of zany amusement. Adams and Okada are deliciously over-the-top as the cannibals, making for fun, despicable villains. Yeah, that’s right, this movie wants you to side with the bloodsuckers. Happily, Steadman and Brown perfectly play off of each other, and their bond is never in question.