Scarlet Samurai: Incarnation
Terminal Descent: Curse of the Jiang Shi

USA / Canada 2013
produced by
David R. Williams, Sean Wynn, Sean-Michael Argo, Jack Skyyler, Michael Whitley (executive), DeeDee Bigelow (associate), Adrienne Camille (associate), Maria Olsen (associate), Alexis Semanchuk (associate) for Red Scream Films, Reel Heroine, Grindhouse Productions, Benefit Films, Broken Glass Productions
directed by David R. Williams, Tara Cardinal
starring Tara Cardinal, Alicen Holden, Christian Boeving, Patricia M. Dunn, Justin Irwin, Catherine Scrivo, Maria Olsen, DeeDee Bigelow, Sean Wyn
story by David R. Williams, Sean Wyn, Tara Cardinal, screenplay by Tara Cardinal, music by Frederic Mauerhofer, Greg Simmonds, Joshua Parish Gomez, Sean Wyn, visual effects by Sean Wyn, Tara Cardinal, special effects by Jeffrey S. Farley, special makeup effects by Sherri Lyn Litz, Jason Milani, fight choreography by Sean Wyn

review by
Mike Haberfelner

To not fail in archeology due to a broken heart and thus have to pay back her scholarship, Ikari (Tara Cardinal) joins a field trip to the long abandoned historic Buffalo Central Terminal, a place that's supposed to be haunted. Shouldn't be too hard an assignment since her deceased dad has taken her there time and again for little expeditions ... a walk in the park really, apart from the fact that Ikari's ex Becks (Alicen Holden) is also on the field trip, so egos clash right away. And the others are also not too fond of Ikari bringing a gay photographer (Justin Irwin) along for a quick and sexy shoot.

Oh yeah, and then there's another problem, the place is infested with demons that try to suck the chi-power out of those who enter, and soon enough one by one Ikari's companions (Justin Irwin, Patricia M. Dunn, Catherine Scrivo) are taken out until it's up to Ikari and Becks to fend off the demons' leader Jiang Shi (Sean Wyn) - too bad then that they hardly have the proper means to do so and are both seriously injured.

But Ikari still has an ace up her sleeve: Feng, her twin sister who's also a top martial artist and swordsmistress who is dubbed the Scarlet Samurai. And fortunately, Feng is also a bit of a psychic - but will she arrive in time to save Ikari and Becks?

Scarlet Samurai: Incarnation blends so many genres it might have a bit of a patchworky feel to it: It's part slasher and survival horror, part adventure, part superhero and part martial arts story, parts very serious drama but also features obvious comedy and moments of intentional camp ... and it works quite beautifully, too. Basically this is due to a light-footed narrative approach, paired with a very swift pace, an energetic directorial effort, plenty of well-staged action, and a competent cast led by Tara Cardinal shining in not one but two roles.

That the blend works is actually all the more significant because half of the material of the original shoot got lost in the mail (FedEx, in case you wonder), and new material (which consisted of a whole new narrative thread) was added at a later date to make things work at all. But the movie isn't just entertaining if you take this into consideration, it's actually a pretty decent movie, and more fun than quite a host of similar flicks that were filmed in one go ...

Recommended!

review © by Mike Haberfelner

 

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