"Ring of Darkness" is a really mediocre zombie film with several flaws and positive ones.
**SPOILERS**
After an unexpected incident, Xavier Doorsberg, (Jeremy Jackson) B.J. Banyon, (Colin Bain) Jake Slater, (Matt T. Baker) and Kyle West, (John Wynn) members of a popular boy-band, decide to hold an audition to determine the fifth member of the group. One applicant, Shawn Walker, (Coltin Scott) manages to impress their manager Alex Marshall, (Adrienne Barbeau) and is offered a spot with the band. Undergoing a rigorous training process to prepare himself, his rebellious attitude begins to rub off on the other members, but he is allowed to stay there. As he decides to leave, he stumbles upon a special secret about the band and their past, which contains everything from black magic rituals to human sacrifice. When the others get wind of his knowledge, they plan to make sure he doesn't reveal the horrible secret to the world.
The Good News: This here dis manage to get some things right. Every now and then, there was a pretty nice visual supplied by the film. The big one happens pretty early in the film, as the sight of the giant house surrounded by fog in the moonlight in the background is a pretty impressive sight. The several rituals held in the cave do the same, since the cave itself looks great and has a fantastic, chilly vibe to it that is mixed in with the necessary ingredients for the ritual. These here are all great examples of this, which works for the caves because it's seen so often, since there's several big sequences in the film that require such scenes to be necessary. It really seems to pick up energy in the last half hour as well, actually doing something rather than just wander around with few key moments here and there where the band attacks others. This includes a rather lengthy chase sequence and a brilliant ceremony that features the only real gore in the film as several violently melt down into piles of sand. The chase stands out for the fact that it's long, creepy, suspenseful and holds the interest throughout, which the movie proper does as well. That's always a great thing for a film to do, especially one as cheesy as this one is. There's some pretty good elements from this one when it tries.
The Bad News: There really isn't a whole lot wrong with this film. Most of the flaws present can be attributed to it's short run-length. This here piles on most of the boy-band gimmicks into the front end of the film that it doesn't have a lot of steam for the second half, and that makes it feel really rushed and not at all that timed perfectly. This one really could've been stretched out for another couple of minutes to let it transition better into the horror after the boy-band shenanigans at the beginning. That's due to the discovery and acceptance done too quickly, which doesn't feel natural. There's also no real blood or gore until the end, really making the beginning part quite dull and bloodless. For a film about zombies, that's really hard to believe, knowing about the past. There really should've been more, especially as there isn't a whole lot of kills to begin with. Some gore would've helped, and it's hard to say to say how it would've been had it changed around the perception of zombies. This one here almost shouldn't be a zombie film, as they behave so unlike zombies. There's no roaming hoards, no shuffling about and take on the form of a dancing, pop-music boy-band. It's hard to feel any fear, especially as this one is so far removed from traditional zombie fare. That shouldn't be a strike, but it is, and also manages to bring this down slightly.
The Final Verdict: While staying away slightly from the general rule of zombie films, this one does have enough going for it to make it worthwhile. There's plenty here for lovers of direct-to-video fare to enjoy, while those who aren't that into them will be disappointed by this one.
Rated R: Graphic Language, Violence and Brief Nudity
**SPOILERS**
After an unexpected incident, Xavier Doorsberg, (Jeremy Jackson) B.J. Banyon, (Colin Bain) Jake Slater, (Matt T. Baker) and Kyle West, (John Wynn) members of a popular boy-band, decide to hold an audition to determine the fifth member of the group. One applicant, Shawn Walker, (Coltin Scott) manages to impress their manager Alex Marshall, (Adrienne Barbeau) and is offered a spot with the band. Undergoing a rigorous training process to prepare himself, his rebellious attitude begins to rub off on the other members, but he is allowed to stay there. As he decides to leave, he stumbles upon a special secret about the band and their past, which contains everything from black magic rituals to human sacrifice. When the others get wind of his knowledge, they plan to make sure he doesn't reveal the horrible secret to the world.
The Good News: This here dis manage to get some things right. Every now and then, there was a pretty nice visual supplied by the film. The big one happens pretty early in the film, as the sight of the giant house surrounded by fog in the moonlight in the background is a pretty impressive sight. The several rituals held in the cave do the same, since the cave itself looks great and has a fantastic, chilly vibe to it that is mixed in with the necessary ingredients for the ritual. These here are all great examples of this, which works for the caves because it's seen so often, since there's several big sequences in the film that require such scenes to be necessary. It really seems to pick up energy in the last half hour as well, actually doing something rather than just wander around with few key moments here and there where the band attacks others. This includes a rather lengthy chase sequence and a brilliant ceremony that features the only real gore in the film as several violently melt down into piles of sand. The chase stands out for the fact that it's long, creepy, suspenseful and holds the interest throughout, which the movie proper does as well. That's always a great thing for a film to do, especially one as cheesy as this one is. There's some pretty good elements from this one when it tries.
The Bad News: There really isn't a whole lot wrong with this film. Most of the flaws present can be attributed to it's short run-length. This here piles on most of the boy-band gimmicks into the front end of the film that it doesn't have a lot of steam for the second half, and that makes it feel really rushed and not at all that timed perfectly. This one really could've been stretched out for another couple of minutes to let it transition better into the horror after the boy-band shenanigans at the beginning. That's due to the discovery and acceptance done too quickly, which doesn't feel natural. There's also no real blood or gore until the end, really making the beginning part quite dull and bloodless. For a film about zombies, that's really hard to believe, knowing about the past. There really should've been more, especially as there isn't a whole lot of kills to begin with. Some gore would've helped, and it's hard to say to say how it would've been had it changed around the perception of zombies. This one here almost shouldn't be a zombie film, as they behave so unlike zombies. There's no roaming hoards, no shuffling about and take on the form of a dancing, pop-music boy-band. It's hard to feel any fear, especially as this one is so far removed from traditional zombie fare. That shouldn't be a strike, but it is, and also manages to bring this down slightly.
The Final Verdict: While staying away slightly from the general rule of zombie films, this one does have enough going for it to make it worthwhile. There's plenty here for lovers of direct-to-video fare to enjoy, while those who aren't that into them will be disappointed by this one.
Rated R: Graphic Language, Violence and Brief Nudity