Being on her own most of the time because Erma tends to be out or sleeping it off most of the time, Nina wanders the woods surrounding the town, living in her fantasy world where she's the daughter of the Rabbit King - but in the woods she makes many a vile discovery, culminating in her running into a trio of young wannabe Satanists (Lillybeth Held, Bailey Smart-Zimmerman, Caleb Ryden) who want to make her the centerpiece of a blood sacrifice. And this is when the Rabbit King saves her, killing the Satanists. The Rabbit King is actually an escaped and highly dangerous lunatic, Milton (Jonathan Holbrook), who has killed his way through the neighbourhood and actually found the rabbit mask she dropped earlier rather by chance, to don it to his outfit - but it's enough to have her believe she's the actual Rabbit King, and her admiration in turn finds a soft spot with him. Soon she takes him home with her, and gives him abode in a neighbouring treehouse, and in return he takes care of her much better than Erma, who's presently on a drug run through half the country, ever could - even if that means killing the occasional friend of Nina's. It's really when the greedy landlord (Dave Shecter), Ash and his goons, and the police come all in quick succession that things come to a head ...

Now this is quite an unusual movie: In a way it's a slasher blended with Beauty and the Beast motives, wrapped in crime drama and peppered with twisted small town Americana - and the outcome is like nothing you've ever seen, a sick modern day fairy tale (sick in a good way) that's certainly not for the squeamish. There are two things that really make this film though, for one, is that it's very successful in creating its own "world" with its own rules, and on the other that there is no clear distinction between good and evil, and while many of the "good guys" are deeply fallible, the not so good guys are at least relatable, and Milton, the baddest of them all, is in a way also a tragic and misunderstood hero. And of course, an atmospheric directorial effort and a strong cast really help to bring this story to life.

Well worth a watch for sure.

review © by Mike Haberfelner

 

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