As part of WiHM @lcfremont gets in the water with Killer Mermaid...
Thanks to Hannah Neurotica, February is now officially known as Women In Horror Month. There will always be the naysayers who will complain that there isn't a Men In Horror Month, but the point of WIHM isn't to exclude men, but to celebrate the role women play in horror. If it weren't for women, horror movies really wouldn't be a thing would they? The virgin, the nerd, the spunky brunette, the whore, the ditz and the Final Girl. 98% of horror movies would not exist if these female stereotypes didn't exist. WIHM is a time to focus on films that, in their own special ways, highlight what the fairer sex has brought to the genre. Behind every great man there's a great woman and horror is the place to go to really see this truth shine through.
For every splatter film that consists mainly of boobs, blood, boobs, guts and more boobs, there is a I Spit On Your Grave, The Descent, The Last House on the Left, Martyrs and any other film that showcases women in all of their bravery, tenacity and mental and emotional strength. While not nearly in the same category as the aforementioned films, Killer Mermaid is certainly a movie that you can celebrate WIHM with.
Written by Marko Backovic and Barry Keating, Killer Mermaid (or Nymph depending upon your global location) takes place in the gorgeous Mediterranean and is cast with only painfully beautiful and thin people. Our two token American girls, Kelly and Lucy, are on vacation when they accidentally stumble upon a deserted island that is home to a mermaid. Yes, the sultry vixens of the sea who hypnotize men with their siren songs and long, sexy locks.
Directed by Milan Todorovic (Zone of the Dead) our story of American tourists in a beautiful, but dangerous location is pretty much a paint by the numbers horror film and I say this as a compliment. Meet up with a friend, meet some of the locals, travel to the spooky island where a creepy old guy just warned you not to go to and BLAMMO! horror movie goodness. Initially, it's all fun and games and then you start wondering where the hell this killer mermaid is. Well, dear friends, you must wait over an hour to get a glimpse of our aquatic murderous beauty. Is it worth the wait? Yeah, pretty much. Just when your patience and interest is beginning to wane, the mermaid enters and things amp up considerably. Unfortunately, this momentum is not maintained, rather, the ending of the movie is drawn out a bit longer than necessary. In addition, the movie doesn't have a proper ending so much as it has the requisite sequel set up. Depending upon how much you were able to check out on logic and just go along for the ride, you will either be excited or exasperate by this possibility.
With high production values, a gorgeous backdrop, seriously beautiful makeup effects and a truly unique villain, Killer Mermaid is a fun, albeit shallow, horror film that really plays on the power of women. The ladies in this film are much more logical and tough than some of the men and the notion that a pretty lady can, literally, sing someone into their watery grave is pretty amusing.
Lisa Fremont
Twitter: @lcfremont
Images: IMDb
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