Reviewed by Melissa Antoinette Garza
As stated on IMDB this movie was made in 2010! It’s 2012. Why am I only hearing about it now? I must say, I love stories about insane individuals having young eager prodigies. That is the core plot of Death and Cremation.
Stan (Brad Dourif) is a murdering mortician in a small town. He cleans up after his murders while awaiting a representative to answer his call.
His cohort is Jarod (Jeremy Sumpter) a picked on goth kid who is called names and beaten up constantly. Then Lindsay /Ms. Skank-a lot (Kate Maher) befriends and makes out with Jarod only to get him jumped by 3 guys.
Later, Ms. Skank-a lot meets and berates Stan which definitely is the wrong thing to do. He finds that wench at her place of work and bashes her skull in. The police get on the case and nosy Officer Matt Fairchild (Scott Elrod) starts investigating. They question Stan who keeps his cool as much as possible.
Meanwhile, Jarod’s mother tells him that he needs to get a job and to stay away from smoking weed all day. At first, Jarod just works for Stan. He becomes curious about the room where the cremation takes place. He asks Stan to see it as he wants to do them himself. Stan says no but when pushed gives Jarod the keys. He sees a bunch of urns, one with Lindsay’s initials. He asks about the urns and are told that they’re random people and that the families didn’t want the urns.
Later, bullies beat the hell out of Jarod as they believe he was part of Ms. Skank-A Lot’s disappearance. He shows up at Stan’s home and tells him that he’s attacked every day. Stan takes the name of the ringleader, David Valentine (Blake Hood) and starts plotting revenge. Stan was an abused child who now aims to protect his only friend as he sees himself in Jarod.
This is a great demented tale with a phenomenal cast. Dourif is one of my personal favorites of all time. Whether the voice of Chucky, the lead in Spontaneous Combustion or the critically acclaimed Deadwood, Dourif shines!
Jeremy Sumpter also does great. He plays the bullied young kid very well and his arc is a unique one to watch.
This is a tale told in a modern manner while capturing the deep poignant moments that are often missed and overlooked in recent productions. There are times when the villains earn sympathy and the victims seem like the villains. It’s muddies the waters up – and it has been done before but not on this type of level.
They aren’t dark heroes. The actions of Stan are reprehensible but his adoration for Jarod stands out and the emotional bond is gripping and makes Stan likeable. Yes, he is a killer but most of the people he kills are scum.
I must say the conclusion is f’n awesome!
All in all, it’s a smarter and more low key Natural Born Killers. Bloodletting fans will get it and enjoy it!
Scared Stiff Rating: 8/10
