Natural Selection (1999)

User Rating:

5.6/10   

Director:

Mark Lambert Bristol

Writers:

B.J. Burrow (writer)
Allen Odom (writer)

Genre:

Comedy | Thriller | Horror

Tagline:

America's Newest Weapon Against Evil!

Plot:

Residents of an East Texas town react strangely when a serial killer invades their small town world. |

Plot Keywords:

Independent Film

Cast

Michael Bowen	...	Willie Dickenson
David Carradine	...	Louis Dehoven
Darren E. Burrows	...	Glenn Royce (as Darren Burrows)
Elizabeth Barondes	...	Sally Dickensen
Missy Atwood	...	Marie Franklin
Marina Anderson	...	Martha Graham (as Marina Carradine)
Joe Unger	...	Detective Harry Richards
Bob Balaban	...	Dr. William Powell
Stephen Root	...	Mr. Crenshaw
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Guilford Adams	...	Colin Dickenson
Fritz Beer	...	Mover #1
Daniel Bull	...	Mover #2
Cherry Cheney	...	Sugar the Dog
Michael Costello	...	David Haltner
Courtney Davis	...	Crime Scene Photo Victims
Dorothy Deavers	...	Lou Ann Hindricks
Lana Dieterich	...	Mrs. Dickenson
Dale Dudley	...	Eddie Dickenson
Jason Duncan	...	Marathon Runner
Vic Feazell	...	Kirk Graham
Steve Flanagin	...	Ted Billings
Gabriel Folse	...	Earle
Jenn Gardner	...	Crime Scene Photo Victims
Jon Geiger	...	Mr. Dickenson
Bradford Hardie	...	Creepy Vampire
Johnny Hardwick	...	Documentary Director
Melissa Holmes	...	Young Mrs. Dickenson
Laura House	...	Mrs. Parryman
Heather Kafka	...	Cassandra
Jason King	...	Crime Scene Photo Victims
Todd Lowe	...	Jimmie Dickenson
Mark Miks	...	Jamie Crenshaw
Alex Morris	...	Alex
Chad Nell	...	Lucas Harold
Lou Perryman	...	Pappy
Bob Richardson	...	Coach Al Sand
Judy Scott	...	Mrs. Crenshaw
Charlie Sexton	...	Simon Felton
Elizabeth Sweton	...	Crime Scene Photo Victims
Jennifer Szabo	...	Waitress (as Jennifer Sabo)
Adam Warren	...	Morgue Guard
Bill Wise	...	Ferrel Dickenson

Also Known As:

Killer X (UK) (DVD title)
The Demon Slayer (Europe: English title) (DVD title)
The Monster Hunter (USA) (DVD title)
The Monster Slayer (USA) (MIFED title)

MPAA:

Rated R for strong violence and language.

Runtime:

UK:88 min (DVD version)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Certification:

UK:15 (original rating) | UK:18 (DVD with additional material) | USA:Unrated

Filming Locations:

Austin, Texas, USA

Company:

24/36 Productions

Soundtrack:

Ya No Escushe Voces Mas

Great Fun!

I love this movie, which, dare I say, with some well deserved luck, could be the "Blair Witch" of comedy. "Natural Selection" is a movie within a movie about a good ole boy gone very very bad in a small Texas town. Willie Dickenson is a fugitive serial killer who's body count stands at eight. A documentary filmmaker interviews the cops, the neighbors, the family, the groupies, and the victims' parents and attempts to solve the riddle of Willie, i.e., "what makes a time bomb tick?"

"Natural Selection" is an original, hilarious satire that never plays it safe. It skewers our perverse obsession with twisted hero worship. After all, in this country we don't know what to make of the notorious, so we just make them celebrities. There's so much to like about this indie underdog: the look-- eye candy way beyond the budget; the sensibility-- yes, Virginia, a movie about a cold-blooded killer can actually be at its heart warm and homespun; the soundtrack-- featuring welcome contributions from the greatly underappreciated Texas rocker Charlie Sexton; and especially the inspired performances from a tremendously eclectic cast.

Michael Bowen, as Willie, gives a complex and unbelievably delicate performance. As a father-to-be, he is a man who is capable of tenderness, but is driven by his demons to cold-blooded murder. Here's a man who mails his victims heads, yet we feel a measure of sympathy for him. That's acting. David Carradine delivers a wonderful, comic performance unlike any you've ever seen as a wacko FBI agent on Willie's trail. NewsRadio's Stephen Root is as funny as he's ever been--and that's damn funny--as a victim's father, and proves once again that in comedy, monkeys are always hilarious. And veteran character actor Bob Balaban is a riot as a crackpot psychiatrist with an ego bigger than Texas. And just trust me about Willie's cousins. You can't go wrong with rednecks, beer and shotguns either.

"Natural Selection" is a wonderful surprise. Scene after scene, it's like you're scooping up another unexpected gem.