What The Waters Left Behind: Scars

NOW ON VOD AND DVD! The hills will never run out of eyes in the ferocious Argentine horror flick What The Waters Left Behind: Scars. The 2017 first entry, What Left Behind, was co-written and directed by Nicolás Onettia, Luciano Onetti, and Carlos Goitia. This flick was written by Camilo Zaffora, with Nicolás Onetti taking on directing duties solo. But beware, this sequel is all gruesome bite despite the behind-the-scenes shake-up.

The 1982 prologue, set during the Falklands War, introduces cannibalistic Argentinan solider Antonio (German Baudino) chewing pieces of a British trooper. Flash to present-day Argentina and the final night of the tour of The Ravens, a goth metal band made up of Javi (Augustin Olcese), guitarist/singer Jane (Clara Kovacic), Mark (Juan Pablo Bishel), Sophie (Maria Eugenia Rigon) and drummer Billy Bob (Matias Desiderio). Playing a small club out in the sticks, they run into spooky Carla (Maguii Bravi), who invites them to a big family barbecue in the nearby town of Epecuen. Carla and Billy Bob hook up in the back of the band camper, which pisses Sophie off. She throws Carla out, and the drummer follows her into the night.

“…a rock group who falls upon the cannibals.”

Billy Bob isn’t back when the band wakes up, so they drive to Epecuen to look for him. There, The Ravens find the ruins of a former resort town that flooded out years ago, with empty, broken buildings and no sign of life. Hidden in the distance, Antonio observes them enter the ruins, a huge machete hanging on his hip. Soon a large, hulking form with an animal skull on his head named Tito (David Michigan) rises from the wreckage. He starts closing in alongside his relative Carla, who has a big smile on her face.

You don’t have to have watched the 2017 original to appreciate What The Waters Left Behind: Scars. While watching it, I had no idea this was a sequel, as I go raw into many screenings and only look up specifics afterward. From the synopsis, the first movie seems to be about a film crew in the same abandoned town. This time we gussy up the first’s remake of The Hills Have Eyes with a fresh twist of Green Room by making the leads a rock group who falls upon the cannibals. This is an excellent hybrid, as musicians will give your body count plumage. Blood dripping down a forehead is always more striking if it is under an unusual hairstyle. Also, I appreciate it when gothic rock and dark metal are used in horror movies as the tastes match.