Blu-Ray Review: Fathers Day (2011)

Father's Day  (2011)

Directed by:  Adam Brooks, Jeremy Gillespie, Matthew Kennedy, Steven Kostanski, Conor Sweeney

Stars: Adam Brooks, Matthew Kennedy, Conor Sweeney…..

An orphaned toughie teams up with gay street hustler named “twink” and a sexually confused priest to catch a deranged criminal who rapes fathers and kills them in gruesome fashion.  

There’s no doubt that the plot of this movie is far out there. In the hands of less capable filmmakers this would surely be quickly dismissed and forgotten. Fortunately this movie is the product of Canadian film collective “Astron 6”, six men whose love for genre films show through every frame of this wonderfully twisted modern day exploitation opus.

From the first scene were treated to what appears to be a program recorded of a TV station circa mid 80’s. It’s a brilliant intro and helps frame the mind blowing absurdity you’re about to witness. The movie starts and you’re immediately transported to another time when exploitation fare was the norm. The color grading, lighting, cinematography, and amazing soundtrack is spot on of an exploitive horror movie from decades past.

It’s important to point out the Astron 6 group isn’t just aping genre films of the 70’s and 80’s. They have managed to do something a lot of modern day film makers have tried and failed at. That is to create a truly genuine Grindhouse experience. The actors deliver their lines with a self-awareness that send a little smile and wink to the viewer, while not being too over the top that it becomes a farce.

The special effects and stunts are all old school practical and lend to the gritty feeling of the film. Wild characters, witty dialog, and great gore bit’s all come together to sell this film as a legitimate Grindhouse showcase.

In the U.S. the film is distributed by Troma Entertainment in a few different flavors of Blu-Ray and DVD single and combo packages. I opted for the “Father's Day 4 Disc Limited Edition Numbered Blu-ray/DVD/CD” box set. It comes with the film on Blu-Ray with amazing transfer quality, DVD, one DVD packed with extras, and the kick ass soundtrack on CD!

I can’t speak highly enough about this film! It amazes me that Rodriguez and Tarantino had millions at their disposal and couldn’t quite nail down what a team of freshmen delivered so eloquently on a budget of $10,000!  

If you haven’t figured it out yet, I love this movie and would totally recommend it to any exploitation genre lover. You may have been let down in the recent past by Grindhouse reimagining’s but this one is the real deal.

Electroschlock Approved!