The low-budget project of the director, screenwriter and producer Bradley Stryker, combining the three most sought-after movie genres - adventure, horror and thriller - is one of the most original horror films of 2017. The film "Land of Smiles" received positive reviews from the audience, but critics brought down a flurry of skeptical reviews. Without reinventing the wheel, Bradley Stryker managed to create not a movie masterpiece, but a strong average genre model, exploring the rather acute social and moral problems of modern society.
Briefly about the plot
Reviews of the film "Country of Smiles" position the work of Stryker as one of the most tough and gloomy horror of last year, in which graphic sadism and psychology are approximately equal. The director demonstrates the plot of history intentionally leisurely, allowing the public to build their own versions of what is happening, to distribute roles and assume when the promised "horror" begins.
A brief description of the storyline, which contains reviews of the audience about the film "Country of Smiles", states that most of the timing is focused on the main character Abby, her friend African-American and friend Ben, a visionary loser who joined the girl's duet. Trinity visits all the places of Thailand's thirsty: brothels, bars, eateries in a picturesque area in search of the missing girlfriend Penny. A mysterious maniac operator directs the characters, throwing up tips in the form of notes or videos. The psychopath is masked by a clown and is the kidnapper of Penny.
After reading a brief description of the story underlying the picture, it is difficult to disagree with the authors of the reviews about the film “Country of Smiles”, that the plot is definitely secondary.
The virtues of horror
Analyzing the work of Bradley Stryker, critics in the reviews of the film "Country of Smiles" called a few trump cards of the tape. Among them are convincing special makeup, the desperation of a screenwriter and director, making bold attacks on the territory of an extreme body horror, full of blood and perversions. Naturally, “Land of Smiles” is not a movie for everyone. With pseudo-documentary first-person shooting with a jumping and trembling camera, you will hardly surprise anyone. Moreover, the director does not rely on a clear narrative structure and an intelligible script, but on emotions - logically the scenes are connected impeccably, a lot of understatement. Sometimes the author pleases those who watch with nice staged episodes and curious color schemes, something like the eminent provocateur Lars von Trier loves to play in contrast . Stryker obviously learned a lot from him.
disadvantages
In the reviews of the film “Country of Smiles,” film experts note that the project structure contains only one significant plot twist, so he even has 90 minutes of timing. The director puts the cards on the table quite early, so the bulk of the story is a sample of boring “water”.
In separate episodes, a visually effective film is hopelessly spoiled by a mediocre acting game. Each performer embodies his character unconvincingly, frivolously and with a mass of shortcomings. The tape can not be ranked among a number of bright examples of the new horror wave. To become a full-fledged mass hit like “It” or “The Curses of Annabel: The Origin of Evil”, “Land of Smiles” lacks the aesthetics and professionalism of all members of the crew.