Souleater – review

Director: Michael Lang

Release date: 2017

Contains spoilers

So, the idea of a soul eater, a form of energy vampire, is fairly set. Then, when said creature turns out to be an overworldly creature (probably demonic) it still is a type of vampire film in my book, or at least vampiric. When the very same creature creates undead (albeit zombies) then, well it is a vampire film by hook or by crook.

Souleater was a strange beast in that it was clearly a budget effort but the cinematography had a chunky element that was perfectly pleasing. It added an anti-hero element that was great and had some interesting performances.

Loren Blackwell as Pike

It starts in thirteenth century Sicily, with a knight (Tony Armer) and a priest (Joe Davison). They are walking through the dark and carry a bag, which is getting heavier; due to the orb it contains that starts to glow. It indicates that the moon is near its zenith and the door (to Hell) is opening. The priest panics and the credits role. After the credits we are in New Orleans and a couple of “knights of the road”, Pike (Loren Blackwell) and Demon (Brian Kahrs), are with their bikes. A guy nearby slaps his gal and Pike intervenes with some controlled violence.

young love heading to the macabre

Off to Florida and Freddy (Gavin Roache) and Lindy (Kelly Sullivan) are wandering through the dark with a torch until they come across an abandoned house said to be haunted. They go inside and think they can hear something, they run and we pov see through the creature’s eyes (it is invisible, so we never see it until the climax of the film – despite characters saying it is large). They run but it grabs Freddy and drags him back in.

Peter Hooten as Talley

Sheriff Buford Talley (Peter Hooten) is trying to enjoy an Italian sub when dispatcher Gretchen (Kerri Stringer) radios him. A local resident has heard screaming coming from the abandoned house. Talley wants to send the deputy, Roy (Greg Wilson), but he’s on the other side of town and so, reluctantly, he takes the call. As he nears he sees Lindy running out, in a panic, and grabs her (and subsequently arrests her for assault on an officer and resisting arrest, holding her in custody). At the house he finds nothing – but we see a monster pov shot looking out at him.

Thomas Noel Smith as Dolan

The long and short is that Pike is Lindy’s dad and so comes to town looking for his daughter (who calls him with her one call). Meanwhile Talley has three disappearances in as many days. He discovers that there are a couple of odd blokes at the local motel who have been there for three days and decides they must be involved. They are Father Dolan (Thomas Noel Smith) and Spencer (Johnathan Ball), Dolan’s assistant. Dolan is an excommunicated priest and keeper of the orb.

victim vanishing

They track entry into our world by souleaters – who come through on the new moon and leave on the full. In the meantime they eat souls, and only by throwing the orb into the portal as it reopens can the creatures be defeated. The orb then returns to the hand of the chosen person, a man without fear. The film is confused as to whether the invisible creature can be killed or injured otherwise. It is suggested not (only becoming visible when the portal opens) but then they have a van full of weapons and do try and lure it out at one point. We end up with an uneasy alliance between priest, sheriff and the bikers.

corporeal form

The creature, when it appears, is an alien looking thing with tentacles (or mantis-like limbs). At one-point Dolan suggests it feeds on fear and it is also intimated that it takes the souls with it, back to hell, rather than feed on them straight away. When it takes the soul the body seems to disintegrate but it then deposits the body near the portal. Described as the living dead, the soulless are killed like a normal person but are snarling zombie-like creatures (called zombies in credit but reminiscent of deadites).

zombie victim

I mentioned the “chunky” cinematography and it really does have a thickness to it that works well. The POV from the creatures is filtered but there is little in the way of effects and those they attempt are aided by a dim lighting. Acting is a mixed bag but Loren Blackwell is suitably taciturn as anti-hero Pike and Peter Hooten is so wonderfully over the top as Talley that he almost makes it worthwhile on his own. The story is patchy – the cops only believe they have three missing persons but the hunters get there by looking at patterns of missing persons (that the police are apparently unaware of but the papers have reported on). One wonders how (or why) they hold Lindy so long – but then maybe that’s how things role in Florida. Despite some story issues this was quite fun, nothing stunning but fun nonetheless. 4.5 out of 10.

The imdb page is here.

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