I enjoy and highly respect Christopher Alan Broadstone’s films if nothing more than for the fact that they have tremendous balls. These films aren’t only pushing the boundaries of what an audience will sit through, they look amazing too. This isn’t just some hack trying for the cheap gross out with buckets full of Halloween make-up. A lot of craft goes into these tests of endurance and it shows. With “Human No More” it makes three Christopher Alan Broadstone films that I’ve seen and I guess I can now consider myself a fan of his work. And as fans always do, I can now pick my favorites of the pack. “Human No More”, unfortunately, is my least favorite.
Drenched in booze dizzy visuals, “Human No More” finds a detective locked away in a basement, struggling with his work on a horrific murder case that ultimately sees him giving up on the human race. Tony Simmons plays the detective and in this actor, Broadstone has a star. Simmons has that talent that makes you want to watch him no matter what he’s doing. He could be picking his nose for twenty minutes and you’ve got yourself some good watchin’. Simmons is one the several saving graces of this film that winds up running too long for its own good.
The detective’s struggle is evident as we listen to cryptic tape recordings and witness a monologue he speaks into a camera, it just goes on a little too long. The filthy, violence decorated atmosphere is gorgeous and the hellish soundtrack inspired by the detective’s frame of mind sets the perfect mood for a creepfest, but patience begins the run out after the ten minute mark. Then again, there’s Broadstone testing the audience’s endurance once again. Are you down for it? There’s only one way to find out. The worst thing that happens is that you see something that sure ain’t like the rest and, f**k, that’s not too bad, is it?
