D-Railed

Christopher Cano, who scores plenty of Asylum movies, is able to replicate the various genre threads in his music as well. As the film progresses, his compositions become heavier, as the horror ramps up for the characters. It is subtle, but ever so effective and quite memorable.

The cast shines brightly throughout the quickly moving 90-minute runtime. The young Shae Smolik has already appeared in horror films like The Hatred, which I liked until the end, and the Stan Lee produced Syfy Channel movie The Sandman, which I love. D-Railed continues her strong streak of genre fare and is the best performance I have seen from the thespian to date. Phil Young, as the creature with a thirst for blood, is fantastic. He moves believably and comes across as a truly menacing monster. As the initial antagonists, Hopkins and Kay are a lot of fun and bring high energy to their roles. Throw in a brief appearance by Lance Henriksen, and you have a seriously talented cast to boot.

“The cast is nothing short of miraculous with Carter Scott giving a career-defining, star-making turn as Evelyn.”

However, D-Railed is owned by Carter Scott as Evelyn. Scott is forced to go through a lot in this film. Throughout the movie, she must learn to trust her instincts while fighting for her survival and gaining the trust of complete strangers. That is a lot to shoulder, but Scott’s effervescent charisma ensures that she is able to pull it all off. If this bold, demanding performance does not launch her career toward stardom, it will be a crime.

But even her brilliance is not the real star of the show. No, that remarkable distinction belongs to the production and costume designs. Maintaining an accurate period look, costume-wise, for a large ensemble on a budget, is not an easy task. However, costume designer, Sarah Ellis, proves up to the challenge, and everyone’s wardrobe is detailed and appealing. The monster suit Phil Young wears is remarkable. The creature was sketched out by Fabrigar himself, and the actual suit built by Kyle Thompson from Midnight Studios FX. A mix of Creature from the Black Lagoon and a Lovecraftian, eldritch horror, its coloring and design are creepy as hell.