~Spoiler~
Borderland is not at all what I expected from one of the After Dark Horrorfest titles. First off, it's doesn't strike me as a straight-up horror film. Yes, the situation is terrifying, but that doesn't necessarily make it horror. From the hype I had heard, I was expecting Hostel in Mexico. Thankfully the filmmakers went another direction. Borderland is simply a really engaging thriller with some visceral and bloody moments. But horror fans should not be put off by those comments. It's actually a good movie (which is more than I can say for the majority of the Horrorfest movies). It involves three friends who go to Mexico to live it up for a few days before returning home and possibly going their separate ways through life. One friend is kidnapped and tortured by an evil cult who operate near the border. The other two buds are left to their own devices when they get no help from the police or any of the scared townsfolk. The biggest surprise here is the acting. After coming off the disappointed Tooth and Nail (another Horrorfest flick), Rider Strong returns to my good graces with a wonderfully vulnerable performance. He plays the kidnapped friend and does a great job. Equally good are Brian Presley as the voice of reason among the friends and Jake Muxworthy in the role of the group's a$$hole. One actor going very much against type here is Sean Astin. He plays one of the cult's deranged followers. Now, this is a guy I love to love. This is Rudy...freakin' Samwise! I'm impressed that he was willing to try something different, but I just don't want to see that out of my Goonies. One other complaint comes at the finale. I wasn't as satisfied as I should have been at the end. Comparatively speaking, the villains did not get as good as they gave. Though nothing I would buy, I enjoyed the viewing experience and would recommend this to others.
Borderland is not at all what I expected from one of the After Dark Horrorfest titles. First off, it's doesn't strike me as a straight-up horror film. Yes, the situation is terrifying, but that doesn't necessarily make it horror. From the hype I had heard, I was expecting Hostel in Mexico. Thankfully the filmmakers went another direction. Borderland is simply a really engaging thriller with some visceral and bloody moments. But horror fans should not be put off by those comments. It's actually a good movie (which is more than I can say for the majority of the Horrorfest movies). It involves three friends who go to Mexico to live it up for a few days before returning home and possibly going their separate ways through life. One friend is kidnapped and tortured by an evil cult who operate near the border. The other two buds are left to their own devices when they get no help from the police or any of the scared townsfolk. The biggest surprise here is the acting. After coming off the disappointed Tooth and Nail (another Horrorfest flick), Rider Strong returns to my good graces with a wonderfully vulnerable performance. He plays the kidnapped friend and does a great job. Equally good are Brian Presley as the voice of reason among the friends and Jake Muxworthy in the role of the group's a$$hole. One actor going very much against type here is Sean Astin. He plays one of the cult's deranged followers. Now, this is a guy I love to love. This is Rudy...freakin' Samwise! I'm impressed that he was willing to try something different, but I just don't want to see that out of my Goonies. One other complaint comes at the finale. I wasn't as satisfied as I should have been at the end. Comparatively speaking, the villains did not get as good as they gave. Though nothing I would buy, I enjoyed the viewing experience and would recommend this to others.