Last Lovecraft, The: Relic of Cthulhu (DVD)
Reviewed by Kalebson
Starring Kyle Davis, Devin Mcginn, Barak Hardley, Gregg Lawrence
Directed by Henry Saine
Distributed by Dark Sky Films
“The world is indeed comic, but the joke is on mankind” – H.P. Lovecraft
Something fishy is going on around here! It must be the fact that Dark Sky and Outlaw Films have brought us this fine little horror/comedy by first-time feature film director Henry Saine to chew on. Not having high expectations going in (which was due in part to the awful cover art), I can say that I enjoyed all seventy-eight minutes of the film. In fact, there are quite a few laugh-out-loud pieces of dialogue that outweigh the abysmal Syfy-ish CGI and latex monster suits that, while silly, are pretty much on par with those found in classics like Creature from the Black Lagoon. Still, given the micro-budget of the movie, one cannot ask for much more.
The plot for The Last Lovecraft: Relic of Cthulhu revolves around Jeff (Kyle Davis), a plain, ordinary guy stuck in his little office job at SQRLY Gift Delivery with his friend Charlie (Devin McGinn, who also wrote the film). Jeff soon finds out from the council at our beloved Miskatonic University that he is the last remaining descendant of the Lovecraft bloodline and is to be entrusted to keep one half of the Relic of Cthulhu safe from the “Deep Ones” who are lead by the nefarious Star-spawn, whose Cult of Cthulhu possess the other half of the relic.
If the two pieces of this ancient artifact are ever joined together, the underwater city of R’lyeh will rise, which will result in the end of mankind. Needing more assistance and insight into the world of Cthulhu, Jeff and Charlie stop and pick up Paul (Barak Hardley), the geek of all geeks. From there the trio follow a map in hopes of finding their savior, Captain Olaf. With their combined forces they set out to Star-spawn and thus save the world.
The actors are confident in their roles, and the comedy is definitely welcome during the film. The jokes are sometimes more of a chuckle than a laugh, if even a little ridiculous at times. I have to say, though, Captain Olaf (Gregg Lawrence) and his over-the-top Irish accent make the film that much more enjoyable.
As far as gore is concerned, there is very little, but probably enough to satisfy. There is some blood splatter here and there, and there are a few animated scenes in the film that increase the grue factor as well. Although the latex suits for the Deep Ones are a bit cheesy, they still manage to come off as creepy as they do goofy. The film definitely relies more heavily on the comedy than the actual “fish raping”, but overall there’s enough horror to fill out the scant runtime.
The extras here are fairly decent. We get an audio commentary that is a little annoying as the participants don’t know when to stop commentating, thereby taking away from the ability to follow along with the movie itself. There are a handful of deleted scenes that I’m not even sure where they might have fit in the film, so it’s probably a good thing that they were left on the cutting room floor. The animation gallery is by far the best piece of supplemental material that’s present and accounted for, giving us all sorts of animated visions – some not even part of the film. Tack on a still gallery with a fair amount of behind-the-scenes and comical images of the cast and of course the theatrical trailer, and we’re done. Good stuff for a low-budget affair.
Overall the The Last Lovecraft: Relic of Cthulhu is worth a watch and suitable for pretty much anyone. So throw back a couple beers and enjoy the flick. A true Lovecraftian may, as they usually do, bash the film, but it’s hard to imagine that it was intended to be serious fanfare, just fun.
Can’t we all just get along?
Special Features
3 1/2 out of 5
Special Features:
3 1/2 out of 5
Discuss The Last Lovecraft: Relic of Cthulhu in our comments section below!
Categorized:Reviews
