Two experienced hitmen, Frank and Terry (Kevin Leslie and Morgan James) march their latest victim, Billy (Jacob Anderton), to the "mob graveyard" where they kill and bury their targets. When Billy escapes, the hitmen are left with no choice but to hunt him through the forest, where they soon find themselves stalked by supernatural spirits as the hunters become the hunted.
The film's use of long shots of the forest in its opening sequence is atmospheric and sets a foreboding tone, letting the audience know that something sinister is about to happen.
Kevin Leslie and Morgan James give serious, meaningful and sincere performances. Greg Daven as the mysterious woodsman proceed to ham it up either for comedic effect and/or melodrama.
Not long into the film, there's a brief moment when a sinister-looking man talks to Terry and Frank, claiming to know everything that goes on in the forest. This creates a sense of mystery and foreshadows some morbid moments.
The film has pace, with some scenes focusing on dramatic chases, while others are more focused on taking in the scenery of the forest. The film starts off slowly, perhaps to introduce us to the characters and what they do, but when Billy enters the abandoned building with "THY JUDGEMENT COMETH" written in blood on a wall, the plot really starts to pick up. It takes time for the plot to develop, but when it gets there, it can surely pack a punch!
The special effects are very impressive for an independent horror film. It looks realistic and you can tell the make-up department put lots of effort into getting the blood effects to look incredibly detailed. The make-up looks especially detailed in the film's climax which I can give extra merits for. Perhaps the green blood splatters shown in the flashback sequences connote something unusual.
The movie's use of sound design was also pretty good. At times, there was an effective use of loud noises to scare viewers as well as signifying the supernatural threats Terry and Frank encounter in the second half.
With an overall decent plot, I just wish it did more with some of the plot-threads. There are many red herrings, including someone/something living in the duffel bag shown at the start of the movie, which calls to mind 'Basket Case' (1982).
When the film slows down for the sake of character moments, it can get really interesting. Frank talks about his past relationship with Holly (Faith Elizabeth), who appears later in the film's climax which I won't spoil. The whole sequence gives Frank and Terry some humanity and empathy rather than just being emotionless, hardened hitmen.
Without giving much away, the film does a solid job of trying to convey a message on the morality of contract killers involving a cult. Frank questions his morality concerning the people he killed, which was an interesting twist.
Overall, '13 Graves' is a pretty good independent horror film with an effective use of make-up, sound and cinematography. The film definitely has some solid acting, particularly from Kevin Leslie and Morgan James as Terry and Frank.
The film's use of long shots of the forest in its opening sequence is atmospheric and sets a foreboding tone, letting the audience know that something sinister is about to happen.
Kevin Leslie and Morgan James give serious, meaningful and sincere performances. Greg Daven as the mysterious woodsman proceed to ham it up either for comedic effect and/or melodrama.
Not long into the film, there's a brief moment when a sinister-looking man talks to Terry and Frank, claiming to know everything that goes on in the forest. This creates a sense of mystery and foreshadows some morbid moments.
The film has pace, with some scenes focusing on dramatic chases, while others are more focused on taking in the scenery of the forest. The film starts off slowly, perhaps to introduce us to the characters and what they do, but when Billy enters the abandoned building with "THY JUDGEMENT COMETH" written in blood on a wall, the plot really starts to pick up. It takes time for the plot to develop, but when it gets there, it can surely pack a punch!
The special effects are very impressive for an independent horror film. It looks realistic and you can tell the make-up department put lots of effort into getting the blood effects to look incredibly detailed. The make-up looks especially detailed in the film's climax which I can give extra merits for. Perhaps the green blood splatters shown in the flashback sequences connote something unusual.
The movie's use of sound design was also pretty good. At times, there was an effective use of loud noises to scare viewers as well as signifying the supernatural threats Terry and Frank encounter in the second half.
With an overall decent plot, I just wish it did more with some of the plot-threads. There are many red herrings, including someone/something living in the duffel bag shown at the start of the movie, which calls to mind 'Basket Case' (1982).
When the film slows down for the sake of character moments, it can get really interesting. Frank talks about his past relationship with Holly (Faith Elizabeth), who appears later in the film's climax which I won't spoil. The whole sequence gives Frank and Terry some humanity and empathy rather than just being emotionless, hardened hitmen.
Without giving much away, the film does a solid job of trying to convey a message on the morality of contract killers involving a cult. Frank questions his morality concerning the people he killed, which was an interesting twist.
Overall, '13 Graves' is a pretty good independent horror film with an effective use of make-up, sound and cinematography. The film definitely has some solid acting, particularly from Kevin Leslie and Morgan James as Terry and Frank.