OUTPOST RELEASED ON U.K DVD 15TH SEPTEMBER

* Widescreen 2.40:1 Anamorphic

* English - Dolby Digital (5.1)

* Commentries from director Steve Barker and producer Kieran Parker

* Behind the scenes featurettes

* Deleted Scenes

* Trailers

Currently available to pre-order  from Play and Amazon

OUTPOST is now showing nationwide at Showcase, Cineworld, Vue and local cinemas.

The reasons for their trip slowly become apparent; there are no minerals, there is no Nazi gold, in fact the raison d’être for their journey is a machine which has the mysterious power not only to warp time and space but ultimately to help produce an indestructible army levelling all before them an on further inspection the bunker is not all that it seems. Their mission to be in and out of this war torn hellhole in 48 hours has just been extended.

Steve Barker directs Outpost and for this low budget horror he does an erstwhile job. The film has fantastic pacing revealing information only when it has to yet not leaving the viewer for long periods wondering what’s going on. Every ten or fifteen minutes further information is uncovered carrying the film and the viewer’s interest forward. For a low budget feature it uses its limited finances extremely well, essentially only using 3 locations; the brief bar scene near the start where the deal is done, the woods around the bunker and the bunker itself where most of this film is shot. Makeup for the dead and unburied within the bunker is excellent with costume design on the mercenaries and the scientist/businessman fitting well within the scope and intent of this feature.

It’s a combination of horror, and at times brutal horror, and siege and it is the latter of these two which reminded me so much of a very early John Carpenter and his Assault on Precinct 13. It creates the same atmosphere, the same sense of claustrophobia and the same sense of urgency that something has to be done to survive. As Carpenter flourished on low budget features for sometime I can only hope that the writers behind Outpost have the same sense of imagination and commitment; I would have to say that Outpost is a very promising start. Creating the siege are Zombie Nazi’s from the 1940s, now bare with me here. On first inspection this does seem a little ludicrous but then what doesn’t in most films we see in the cinema or on our screens. Ark retrieval anyone for Indiana Jones?, indestructible psychopathic killers from either Jason or Michael Myers? Yes we suspend our disbelief and that’s what we are asked to do here also.

And once that disbelief is suspended the viewer is rewarded handsomely. The premise is the Nazis are using this experimental bunker to create the ultimate race, the ultimate army, far beyond their own aspirations their intent is to create an army populated by soldiers who would never die. This is slowly revealed throughout the film with some very disturbing scenes; visions of experiments on humans, killing them, disposing of the bodies in piles in one room. And it is in this room that the horror of this piece kicks in. Piled up, layer upon layer are these ‘unfortunate’ souls, unfortunate because they cannot die and now come back to haunt and stalk our mercenary band. There is excellent use of lighting and shadows as we see only brief glimpses of the movements of the undead; we know they are ‘alive’ we know our characters initially don’t and this creates great tension by our own imagination, expanding on what might be to come. Like Blair Witch before it the horror comes from the viewers own imagination and not what the director has to dish out on a plate. Ultimately this is the best horror that anyone could ask for in my opinion, your own mind playing it’s own tricks on you. Fear not though, for those who like their shocks and gore that’s also included. Some brutal killings and more than a few ‘he’s behind you’ moments as the creepies pop up in the most unexpected of places.

The score again reminded me of Carpenter’s work, this time The Thing; not because of it’s haunting electronic tones but because it adds to the characters feelings throughout the film. It heightens the sense of tension and is a welcome addition to this feature, not in your face detracting to what’s on screen, more adding to what you’re seeing and that’s always the sign of a great score. Shot in the bleak woods of Dumfries and Galloway (bleak, trust me I used to live there!) visually the film is muted somewhat, colours drained from the woods and our characters costumes as much as the the blood has been drained from the zombies faces. Without a doubt though this is perfectly suited to the film, no bright colours distracting the viewer from the sombre mood created.

I was astonished again with the actors assembled here. On a low budget I wasn’t expecting too much hoping the story would carry it through but Ray Stevenson (Rome, King Arthur, The Bill) is excellent as the commanding leader who slowly realises that this is not all he had bargained for and now needs to find a way out, quickly. Julian Wadham as Hunt plays his part well enough as the scientist who’s own ambition forsakes everything and everyone else. The mercenaries are a diverse bunch including Richard Brake (Batman Begins) however most are culled from the UK television arena. Here they certainly make the jump to movies well enough with Michael Smiley and Brett Fancy coming across well as the increasingly disturbed Scotsman and battle hardened Russian respectively. Note to Brett though; work on your accent a little.

Outpost has been compared to another low budget early feature, Neil Marshall’s excellent Dog Soldiers and there’s definite parallels, a siege by unknown horrific forces but Outpost easily stands on it’s own alongside Dog Soldiers and should be enjoyed for what it is on it’s own merits. Yes it’s derivative of a few films, Dog Soldiers being one of them, but is mashes themes together to produce it’s own form and that form is a more than enjoyable one.

So ultimately there’s a film out there which in modern day terms has been made for buttons, estimates put Outpost at just over £1million, compared to the millions our US counterparts may spend on the current crop of torture horror, yet Outpost has eclipsed them all by producing something that is genuinely creepy, atmospheric, wonderfully paced and acted; and on this tight a budget it’s a credit to the director, the production team and the actors. It’s a joy to watch, like Dog Soldiers before it a breath of fresh air in a genre populated with too much hack and slash. So for all you spook fans out there then I can whole-heartedly recommend you pop down to your local multi screen and feast your eyes on this. Here’s looking forward to their next feature.

Movie score : 8

The official OUTPOST website is now online here.

***

HORROR

Beefy mercenary DC (Ray Stevenson) has just made a bad decision. He’s taken a job from shadowy businessman Hunt (Julian Wadham). DC and his band of professional soldiers have to get Hunt into an abandoned bunker in an Eastern European war zone, let him look around, and then get him out again. The trouble is the Simon Wiesenthal Center hasn’t had much of an impact in the area, because there are brutal undead Nazi soldiers all over the place.

Filmed in Glasgow’s Film City Studios and on location in Dumfries, Outpost is an impressively pared down genre flick which borrows from the best, most notably John Carpenter (The Thing, The Fog). Debut feature director Steve Barker clearly knows what he is doing. After a slow and detailed build-up in the first half, he opens the door on some really merciless carnage as the soldiers are picked off one by one. It’s enough to make a degenerate schoolboy happy.

As with any low budget horror there are plot holes as open as a fresh wound, plus some fairly risible dialogue and performances, but Outpost looks great (it was shot on film, something of a rarity for modern day horror movies) and is the first of a roster of features to be produced by Glasgow-based company Black Camel. If this is the quality benchmark they are starting with, they are clearly on to a good thing. If this is your bag, you won’t be disappointed.

Selected release from Fri 16 May.

***

OUTPOST is based on an original concept by producer Kieran Parker and the screenplay was crafted together by Rae Brunton. Then Kieran and his partner Arabella Croft went and mortgaged their house to the tune of £200,000, started filming in an old munitions factory near Castle Douglas with additional filming at the Glasgow Film City studio. The film has recieved accolade in the U.S where it was first released on DVD, Sony bought the rights for £1.2 million and it’s won a Scottish Bafta for it’s producers under the rather swish title - Best New Talent.

I was kindly given a review copy of the film to watch and when the film is released on the 16th of May I can definately say that you are in for a treat. You can tell that a lot of thought and planning went into the execution of this film. What is surprising is that in the current climate of gorenography - OUTPOST amps up the suspense in favour of the gore. Doesn’t mean to say that there’s no gore in it - some of the set pieces are truly stunning, but that the gore is measured and isn’t thrown in there because they hoped it would stick.

The film concerns D.C played by Ray Stevenson (to be seen next in the sequel to The Punisher) and a group of mercenaries who go into war torn Eastern Europe at the behest of a dodgy but excellently foppish businessman. They go into an underground bunker that transpires that it was used as an experimentation centre by Nazi doctors during WW2. Then things start to get very messy, very, very quickly. And trying to survive the unfolding horrors becomes quite a pain in the arse to achieve.

The cast clearly have had a whale of a time; the award for best line has to go to the Irishman. When it comes, you’ll know all about it and you won’t be able to stop the belly laughs. The acting is great, you can tell that great care has been taken with the script to make sure that all of the characters are believable, but if there was to be a weak link cast wise, it would have to be the part of the Russian - the accent was all over the place and in parts sounded like Del Boy trying to talk through a mouthful of Borsch. But that is a minor gripe.

The special effects have been used well and the money shots are excellent. I was scratching my head at a couple of them wondering how they managed to pull them off. Even if they were CGI, they managed to make them not look like CGI. Which is always a treat.

The soundtrack, editing and cinematography to my unlearned eye all seem to be top notch. All in all a job well done and could certainly teach Neil Marshall a thing or two. This kicks the Descent out of the park and sends those Dog Soldiers home with their tails between their legs.

In my view OUTPOST should be the most talked about UK horror film for a few years to come. Until the sequel that is.

8/10

All Things HorrorReview Link: http://www.allthingshorror.co.uk/#/outpost/4528752152

***

Plot
In war-torn Eastern Europe, a group of mercenaries discover a long-hidden secret in an abandoned Second World War bunker.

Review

Steve barker makes his debut with a fun, lo-fi chiller/actioner which exploits the novelty value of its own unique breed of baddie: the zombie Nazi. Channelling John Carpenter’s The Fog and Michael Mann’s The Keep, Outpost sets up a team of grimy mercs in “Eastern Europe, the present day”, hired by a dodgy scientist to secure a bunker containing a big, rusty MacGuffin. Barker delivers smart shocks and stylistic flourishes (such as his faux-’40s cartoon of the rise of the Nazi supersoldiers), but his habit of breaking his own rules lets the film down. At one point we’re shown the spectral soldiers appearing wherever they like; later they’re held back by a door. Still, who needs logic when you’ve got Nazi zombies…

Verdict

Logic problems asides, this is a decent effort which makes good use of its fun premise.

***

Reviewer: Dan Jolin

Empire Review Link: http://www.empireonline.com/reviews/reviewcomplete.asp?FID=135572

Watch U.K. theatrical trailer here.

I picked this movie up thinking it would be another lackluster rental that I would turn off half way through. I was surprised that it was actually a pretty decent release. Its not your average poor direct to DVD production. It has a bit of substance as well as great acting even though some of the accents were a little thick.

The plot revolves around a small band of mercenaries who are hired on false presences to accompany and protect a scientist in search of something in an abandoned bunker in Eastern Europe. The mercenaries believe that they were possibly looking for lost Nazi gold but it turns out to be something more sinister.

Once in the bunker, strange things begin to happen and the soldiers begin to get picked off. ‘Ghosts’ start to appear in the bunker to take our our mercenaries one at a time. It starts off as a traditional ghost story but melds into a zombie flick as we learn the true nature of the enemy. The director/screenwriter seemed undecided about the nature of the zombie/ghosts. At one time they seem unaffected by material objects such as doors, bullets, explosives and walls in an immaterial like fashion but during the climax they take on their zombie role and shamble through the bunkers corridors. This seemingly glaring error was not evident until I began gathering my thoughts about the review so I don’t think its subtracts from the production.

It was simply done story with decent acting overall. I could see where they were going with the mixture of racial/ethnic characters in the mercenary band but again the accents were overdone and could have been toned down. The sets and location were perfect for the mood of the film as well as some well placed cinematography. The lighting for the outside shots were on spot for the mood though it showed their budget limitations.

The reasons for the Nazi invasion are basically explained. Based on the similar experiments supposedly conducted on the U.S. destroyer escort USS Eldridge and the principles behind the Unified Field Theory the Nazi’s performed experiments on their own soldiers in an attempt to create the perfect undying soldier. Yet the question is, why the loyalty after your Nazi superiors shoot your in the head or fill you full of unworldly radiation? I just don’t have that sort of nationalist loyalty in my body… don’t get it.

Overall a very decent production for a ’straight to DVD’ release. Every thing was pretty good, the effects were workable with the budget they had, the story kept me interested and horror aspects of the film were just right. No over abundance of blood and gore that we are use to in more recent horror releases.