Bloodletting

I have to confess that although I have followed the output of J R Bookwalter and Tempe entertainment with some interest over the years, I'd never actually seen the dark tale of serial killer mayhem 'Bloodletting', so I was both pleasantly surprised and entertained by what I was watching for the first time!

The film opens with the police arriving at the scene of the latest in a line of serial killings where they are met with the usual expected bunch of ghouls outside, folk obsessed with the maniacs doings, that include one Serena Stalin (played by Tempe regular the lovely Ariauna Albright). Serena is more than slightly obsessed with this particular killer and soon tracks down his whereabouts and forces herself upon him declaring that she wants to be his apprentice and learn the ways of killing, no matter what the price. What follows is in fact one of the blackest and wittiest serial killer films that I have seen in some time. Often pushing the boundaries of taste with some delightfully sick and funny as hell moments that will put a wide grin on most viewers faces with it's clever mixture of bad taste and highly original dialogue which is very much akin to the clever dialogue works of folk like Kevin Smith (of Clerks fame).

The script is excellent on its own right and the keen pacing of the films execution delivers an all round package of great entertainment. The leads of apprentice Serena (the aforementioned Albright) and her mentor Butch Harlow (played by another Tempe regular James L Edwards) carry the show brilliantly with top performances throughout, enhancing the already high standard set by the wickedly humorous script. The film had a troublesome production which is covered in great detail in the discs documentary extra and seemingly may never have seen the light of day (it had started as a short film that all involved never wanted to see again) but thankfully was revived for this very worthwhile production.

The disc is a good all round package also, which as new company Crypt Keepers second release may not be as chock full as their debut Dead next door release is still a solid stand alone release that is definitely worth your attention. The film is presented fully uncut (which goes to show how lenient the BBFC can be when they choose to as the film does contain some strong scenes that would never have made without cuts previously) in its original full screen ratio. The image and audio are sharp throughout and are clean and clear enough taking onboard its low budget origins. The only extra this time round (apart from the obligatory still gallery) is a very welcome one in the form of a great documentary on the making of the film with all involved discussing very frankly and honestly their own thoughts of the films troubled production which I found to be an excellent companion piece to the film itself.

Again, Crypt Keeper prove that they're out to deliver fine product onto the UK market and like their Dead Next Door release they don't disappoint. 'Bloodletting' is a clever and twisted genre romp and Crypt Keepers presentation is similarly enticing. Well worth checking out and roll on future Crypt Keeper releases!

Review by Alan Simpson