Intermedio
**
DVD
Directed By
Andy Lauer
Written By
Kraig X. Wenman
Cast
Edward Furlong .... Malik
Steve Railsback .... Old Man
Cerina Vincent .... Gen
Amber Benson .... Barbie
Callard Harris .... Wes
Paul Cram .... Zee
Alejandro Samaniego .... Jorge
Dean Arevalo .... Al
This week, I'm brought to you by everybody out at www.Horrormovies.com, which is, frankly, a treat.
But not even THEY have what I'm putting out for you this week,
folks, no sir! This is an ADVANCE COPY I'm covering this week. Not even
out in stores!
And what I've got for you this week is "Intermedio," a strange
little surprise from everybody out at The Asylum, whom I'm convinced is
pushing to take over Lions Gate's former slot as the kings of
direct-to-video horror by virtue of sheer prolificacy.
So what we have here is the tale of the children of drug pushers who
take their friends, pack up their car, and head out for the desert to
get their hands on some fine long green, and I'm not talking about
money. At least not in the direct sense.
No, they're going after weed, and what you have to bear in mind
about "Intermedio" is that weed is very, very important to the plot.
Weed is actually as important to "Intermedio" as it was to Snoop Dogg's
entire entourage. And frankly, that's kinda scary.
So anyway, they're going after the weed that it turns out has a
family connection to our two children of drug pushers, and when they
get their hands on the chronic, it has a much higher price than they
bargained for.
And I'm not talking five to ten in a Riker's shower stall with a four hundred pound Filipino named Raoul, either.
Now, the biggest thing you're going to notice about "Intermedio" is
the quality of the acting. It's literally all over the scale. Steve
Railsback, fresh off his stint as Ed Gein in the movie of the same
name, projects fantastic menace as the enraged old man. And Amber
Benson is clearly enjoying herself in the scary / actiony sections
she's given to play.
I'm quite upset with the way things end up for Amber in
"Intermedio." Perhaps her biggest scene involves special effects that
look like they were lifted straight out of the wreckage that is any
film involving Joe Castro. This saddens and angers me by length. Amber
is entirely too good to be subjected to this waste of footage.
Although, as good as she is with the scary stuff and the actiony
stuff, any scene featuring Edward Furlong alongside her leaves her
obviously nonplussed, and seeming very bored.
Not that I blame her. If I had this little Gary Busey-in-training
slobbering all over me I would not look all that excited myself.
Speaking of which, Eddie. Oh dear sweet mercy, Eddie. You look
horrible. You sound as horrible as you look. And I hate to kick a man
when he's so obviously down, but your acting has not improved one whit
from that sad and sorry performance you turned in back in the last
place you were seen alive, "Terminator 2: Judgment Day."
Eddie's biggest problem is that, at least here, he's got one of three basic, selectable moods.
1. Shouting
2. Talking in an incredibly hoarse manner that suggests he's been shouting quite a bit
3. Panting
There is a LOT of panting going on in "Intermedio." Trust me.
Everybody else, from Cerina Vincent on down through the rest of the
no-name cast, manages to do a fairly average job of things, even though
they're busily struggling through a script that features choice
phraseology like:
"Shut your dyke hole"
and
"What the ass?"
I'm beginning to see why there were no subtitles. No one wanted us
to be able to confirm on screen that a character actually managed to
say "What the ass?" with a straight face.
But we can't be too harsh on "Intermedio." For better or for worse,
often for worse, this is still the first genuine bona fide ghost story
we've seen in quite some time.
The ending has its share of twists and surprises, yet still manages to be fairly industry standard for this sort of thing.
The special features include a behind the scenes featurette, audio
options, cast and crew commentary, and trailers for "Alien Abduction,"
"Rachel's Attic," "Way of the Vampire," "Ghost in the Needle," and
"Intermedio."
All in all, "Intermedio" is not that impressive of a movie. It has
its high points, and its low points, and everything in between. It's
probably worth your time to rent, but don't rush.
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