Ben Rock Reviews

KillHer (2022)

A great low-budget horror that knows exactly what it is

[8/10 · 7 November 2022]

I saw this at Screamfest in Hollywood in a wolf-out theater. Once the movie takes off, it's a blast. Well-put-together sequences, funny writing, and a character named "HXB" (Harrison White) who steals every scene he's in.

For most of the movie it's more comedy than horror but when it DOES go horror, strap in - it really goes for it.

This is a movie with an obvious low budget that really makes the most of its resources. The directing and cinematography are done skillfully and manage to make the film feel more expansive in scope than it probably was.

It seems to rely mostly on practical effects instead of CGI which I greatly appreciate. Check it out!

Herd (1999)

Great short film!

[6 July 1999]

I saw this film at the Los Angeles Independent Film Festival, where my film "The Meeting" was screening. Of all the shorts at the festival, it was the one that most stuck with me, mostly because of its twisted sense of humor and cinematic inventiveness.

My film played again at the Florida Film Festival in June, and so did "Herd." I made a point of catching it again, and with a totally fresh audience. It received (easily) the best response of all the films in that particular shorts program.

If you have a local film festival, keep an eye open for this low-tech classic. Often filmmakers (myself included) dwell too long on trying to get Hollywood-like production values. Mike Mitchell eschews all that, knowing the low-tech shortcuts to communicate the same ideas in much funnier ways.