Subferatu

Wackiness ensues as the two crews try to work together to figure out the time travel issue and defeat the mysterious cargo that’s killing members of the team. As the title suggests…it’s a vampire. The film’s silliness incorporates some mild and inoffensive racial, misogynistic, and nerd humor. Harmless, I tell you.

Subferatu is not for everyone. If you like silliness and some light entertainment, you’ve come to the right place. The film’s trailer will clue you in on the kind of fun in store for you. As a comedy, I desperately wanted it to be funnier. Like many indie comedies, that I’ve reviewed of late, Subferatu presents many humorous moments, that will elicit a smile but never comes through on a punchline that will trigger the laugh.

“If you like silliness and some light entertainment, you’ve come to the right place.”

The same holds for the vampire elements. We’re presented with a scary situation, but nothing comes to trigger the frights for what few horror moments there are.

The real star of Subferatu is Mike Dooly, as Gavin McCloud (I do love this name). As McCloud, Doolyhas a smooth voice for broadcasting, the confidence of Superman, and the sea-faring knowledge of Uncle Owen and Aunt Beru. Dooly manages to keep me liking the character and does not wear out his welcome. I especially liked the interplay between McCloud and the female lead, Scarlet (Claire Webber). Lastly, Martyn G. Krouse is also quite good as the very intense and slightly skeptical Nazi commander.

I should also mention that the sets in Subferatu are amazing, as the film’s production designers create a U-Boat setting on an indie budget. In indie films, sets don’t need to be exact, they just need to be believable.

In the end, it’s all silly, harmless fun. If the film delivered on laughs, frights, or both, it would have received a recommendation, but it didn’t. I know full-well that it’s all a matter of taste. I’m sure there’s a whole fanbase ready to submerge its teeth into Subferatu (like what I did there?). To you, enjoy.