Honourable Mentions: Last Exit for the Lost

I have mentioned this film, and its soundtrack, in a few posts before and thought it high time that it received an Honourable Mention. Last Exit for the Lost is an independent British film, was available for free download from Blue Dog Films and comes in at some 40+ minutes.

The film was directed by Matthew Owens and the screenplay by Daniel Hughes was based on a story by Paul Sims. All three appear in the film. The excellent soundtrack is by The Difference Engine, who are comprised of Owens and Sims.

The film begins with a voiceover by Nathanial (Daniel Hughes), who is also known as shakes, and he narrates the film. He tells us of Loki (Paul Sims) and we see Loki and his team of vampire slayers head out for a hunt. The rest of the team are Nathanial, Carson (Louise Housley) and Keratyn (Charles Wilson).

The team splits into two groups and as they search we see them through the eyes of the vampire they hunt. The vampires vision is filmed in a vivid purple. Eventually the vampire attacks Carson, biting her, and is dispatched by Keratyn.

Back at base we begin to hear more of the team. Nathanial has dealt with the bodies and, to cope with the gruesome deeds he must perform, is a drug user. We discover that the team is church backed, the team built around Loki, and their main contact is Martin (Richard Cartwright). Martin is unimpressed with Loki and Nathanial and their methods and Loki demands a meeting with their sponsor Acheson (Matthew Owens).

We also discover that Loki’s wife was taken by a vampire called the Malkavian (Graham Hill) and it is this creature that he hunts specifically.

Acheson cannot replace Carlson but the church still supports the team. However, Martin believes Loki to be uncontrollable and quits his position. Loki snaps and the three remaining team members cut a bloody swath through the ranks of the undead that brings them to the inevitable showdown with the Malkavian.

There is plenty of story that I would have liked to have seen, which the length of the film precludes. This could happily have become a full length feature. There are story threads that could have been followed further and, whilst the fact that they haven’t doesn’t detract from what is there, it does leave you intrigued by what might have been explored, like the attitude of the church as an example. It is unfair, however, to call this a failing as it was a necessity born of the film’s length.

We see very little of the vampires, indeed the majority of vampiric activity is shown in point of view from the vampires. We see the use of a stake, indicating piercing of the heart works, and the flash of blade and a silhouetted beheading. The Malkavian appears to have supernatural powers also, such as emerging up through the floor from nothing. Whilst I said we see little of the vampires, the final battle with the Malkavian is shown in full.

The main thing I can say about this, however, is that you are unlikely to see better available for free on the net (in fact you can quite easily pay for a lot worse) and it really is worth a look. I’ll leave you with a quote from the film:

“This is what we do, you can trust me, we only kill the dead.”