‘Death Valley’ – Review
Horror fans have plenty to love on Shudder and their newest release, the all-action, gore-tastic Death Valley is horror cinema with plenty of bite!
Mercenaries with nothing to lose are hired to rescue a bioengineer imprisoned in a cold war bunker. Upon entering the ominous facility, they find themselves in a fight for their lives when they come under attack from an unknown and deadly creature.
From the mind of long time horror aficionado Matthew Ninaber, Death Valley is a piece of horror cinema that kicks into high gear quickly and leaves no stones unturned from its very first frame. With the clock ticking Ninaber goes for the jugular as he throws a pair of wise-cracking mercs into the pit of a clandestine lab with a raging secret and the gore rushes in quickly. For audiences who love their horror down and dirty, Death Valley delivers the goods. Taking inspiration from the all-corners of the genre and throwing in a good dose of grindhouse fun, Death Valley is horror cinema at its most raging and audiences who have a love for the genre are gonna dig it.
Assembled in the lead role of stoic mercenary Beckett is Ninaber’s very own brother Jeremy Ninaber and he makes for a dashing, yet-dark edged hero. As this Spec Ops mercenary, he’s thrown into the deep end quickly and the labyrinth of this vast underground cavern quickly swallows him and partner Marshall up. Add in the presence of a deadly monster and we’ve really got a party. Ninaber brings a great stoicism and action-man capability to the role of Beckett and his intensity lights up the screen. He’s quick on the gun and has a real presence on screen that you can’t look away from and is a perfect lead for Death Valley.
As a director, Matthew Ninaber keeps Death Valley moving and he doesn’t take the foot off the gas. Everything is about pace with this film, and he jam packs a hell of a lot of action into it. From pitched gun battles in a bombed-out forest to the claustrophobic confinements of an underground bunker and its monstrous occupants, Ninaber keeps his audience on edge. He does this with a simple story and a solid cast and the result is a film that moves at pace. Nothing is shortchanged here and Ninaber and his team muscle in on the action and suspense. Some shocking revelations also catch you off guard in the third act as a viewer and it definitely makes things interesting.
And then there’s the horror. And Ninaber delivers a damn good serving of it. Inspired by the genre and long time favourites including Resident Evil, Aliens and The Thing, Ninaber takes his love for horror cinema and goes to work. And the result is one freaky looking creature with a taste for human flesh. And it’s Ninaber inside the monster suit! Snarling, snapping and screeching, Ninaber is in his element as the creature, and he has a grand time terrorizing his cast as this freakish beast. With a great combination of scares and suspense, Ninaber delivers on the horror and it’s a damn freaky watch.
Death Valley is a full-on horror rush, that’s clever with its narrative and hits the ground running. For horror fans who need their fix, it’s a damn good time at the movies.
Image Shudder
