THE BAGMAN

THE BAGMAN

The film opens in Doomsville, Indiana, with a young lad called Jack being chased through the woods by a group of taunting school kids - Randy, Sue, Henry, Kirk and Margaret.

Randy (Paul Zanone, BLOODY BENDER'S RETURN), starts pushing Jack around, who retaliates by scratching Randy's face. In return, Randy puts a bag over Jack's disfigured head and pushes him face-first into a puddle. Holding Jack in the water, Randy only lets go when he thinks Jack is dead.

The group vow never to talk about what happened - even the reluctant Sue (Stephanie Beaton, BLOOD GNOME; ZOMBIE NINJA GANGBANGERS) agrees not to mention Jack's 'murder' ever again.

The action then briskly shifts to ten years later, and we find Sue living in Seattle with her painter-sculptor boyfriend Matt (Brent McEwan). The highlight of these early scenes is an impromptu sex scene between McEwan and Beaton, with our randy artist shagging his girl over the cooker hobs! Fine pair of lungs on Ms Beaton ...

The passion soon sours though, when Matt brings up the thorny issue of marriage. For her own reasons, Sue is opposed to the idea and after a severe row, gathers her stuff and moves back home to Doomsville.

Coinciding with Sue's return home is the bloody murder of a drunken Henry (Alonzo F Jones, FREEDOMLAND).

You'd think that collapsing on the sidewalk and vomitting would be enough, but poor Henry is clubbed round the back of the head and dragged off to a red-hued cellar - where he awakes strapped to a chair and facing a huge man with a bag over his head. The bagman wastes no time in sawing Henry's arm off, then hammering him to death.

The next evening Sue is tricked into joining Margaret (Katrina McCullough) and Kirk (Wil Matthew) for a reunion. It's the first time the friends have met since "that" fateful day ten years ago ...

Meeting up at the house of Margaret's friends Steve (Mikul Robins, TALES FROM THE GRAVE) and Tonya (CLOAK AND GAG 'ER), the group settle down for a few beers in front of a horror video on the TV. Henry should have been there too, but the group just assume he's passed out drunk somewhere.

After a couple more satisfyingly gory murders, our surviving group meet up with Randy at the local graveyard, where they deduce that someone is out to kill them. Someone who wears a bag on his head. A bag just like the one that Randy forced onto Jack's head many moons ago. Someone who, after running a sword through a victim's stomach, is not opposed to spouting lines like "Payback is a bitch" ...

THE BAGMAN is extremely fast moving, and it's 80 minute running time is over before you know it. The energy from the cast is enjoyable to watch, as are the gory death scenes - and, er, Ms Beaton's breasts.

On the negative side, THE BAGMAN is hardly original (THE BURNING is the most obvious comparison that springs to mind). It must be said too, that this film features some of the WORST acting I've seen in ages. And I sit through a lot of shit.

The ending is far too abrupt, too.

The film is shown here uncut in it's original full-frame aspect ratio and looks decent enough, considering it's low budget digital origins. There's no grain or artefacting to speak of, and although the colours are a little washed-out, images are generally sharp and clear.

The 2.0 mono audio does it's job competently, and without hiccups.

The static menu allows access to the main feature via 12 chapters.

Extras? No, there's none - other than a load of trailers for other Hardgore titles, including INTRUDER, THE STINK OF FLESH, TURKEY SHOOT ...

Although the film has been given a 15 rating by the BBFC, the disc carries an 18 rating - due to the content of some of the trailers. Don't let the 15 rating put you off though: if you like your low budget horror gory and gratuituous, and don't care about little things like decent acting or originality, then this may just be the ticket.

Review by Stu Willis


 
Released by Hard Gore
Region 2 PAL
Rated 18
Extras : see main review
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