By Geno McGahee
I dislike the mix of horror and comedy for the most part. Movies like Club Dread and Shaun of the Dead are exceptions to the rule, but when I see that it is a comedy/horror flick, I usually pass. I passed by the movie “Severance” several times at the video store before finally picking it up and renting it. The cover art sucks, the catch blows, stating that it mixes the television show “The Office” with “The Hills Have Eyes,” but beggars cannot be choosers and I needed a horror film, even if it blew. What was promising about this one was that it was a British film. Those Brits know how to put out a horror film. They are typically smarter and have more respect for their audience. Amazingly, they don’t believe that their audience is all mentally challenged like we do in the states. Severance is a smart film that really delivers, mixing amusing characters with strong writing…and there are some funny moments, but it isn’t the focus of the film.
Palisade Defense is a manufacturer of weapons and the employees are all gathering in a remote wooded area to work on teamwork and strengthen the bond, but when a roadblock stops their bus from making it directly to the cabin, they have to take a detour…on foot! The bus driver refuses to go any other route because he knows something, and even tries to warn them, but this is a horror film and you never see a horror film where people listen to the warnings. “Don’t go there.” “OK.” You never see that.
Richard (Tim McInnerny) is the boss leading this group and he is very amusing in his role. Steve (Danny Dyer) is the stoner, always doing some sort of drug and annoying the other employees, namely the hot blonde, Maggie (Laura Harris). Actually, all of the team wants to nail her, even the boss. Richard has a dream where she wants him to nail her, but when she turns over, she turns out to be a dude! Amazing stuff!
The team makes it to what they first believe to be the cabin, but it turns out to be a somewhat abandoned building. They make themselves at home and that is when things begin to get weird. Gordon (Andy Nyman) serves up a pie that he found and it has human body parts in it. Jill (Claudie Blakley) sees a man in the woods and freaks out, demanding to leave, but they soon find out that they are not going anywhere. In a teamwork exercise, they have a paintball fight, but it ends badly with Gordon losing his leg in a bear trap. They find the bus driver dead and try to hightail it out of there, but it’s not happening. The people in the woods won’t allow it.
The bus flips over and now they are being hunted down by a group of relentless killers. The stoner, Steve, becomes the hero, as he fights this force alongside the other employees…that are still alive. When Maggie blows one of them away, they think that the nightmare is over, but they are unpleasantly surprised when they see a group of them congregate outside of the house. They are not going to make it out of this easily.
One of the best moments of this film is when George (David Gilliam) and the cabin that they were actually supposed to meet at are finally found. When told of the crew of mercenaries in the woods, George grabs some missile launcher that he’s been dying to test. He walks out like a bad ass and points it at the group, but it was apparently a heat seeking missile and he ended up taking out a passenger airplane. It’s a hilarious moment.
Severance is a very interesting movie and brings that British humor that I loved in Shaun of the Dead. I was pleasantly surprised by this. Despite the horrible cover art and catch, I highly recommend this! You cannot judge this book by its cover.
Scared Stiff Rating: 7.5/10. Bad Cover Art, Great Movie.