Feral State

This was my type of movie. Plot was great with tons of drama and grit. Ronnie Gene Blevin playing the Mack character really made this come alive. One of my fav films of 2021. Good job and congrats to everybody involved in this film.

This is a boring movie for sure. The best thing about it is AnnaLynne McCord.

I've been seeing signs around the county for this movie and I had to know why. Apparently it was shot here in Citrus County, which is kinda cool I guess. Decided to give it a shot. It felt so funny to me to see almost everything they showed in the movie because I've seen it all my life, like the Roller Barn. If only I'd carved my name into that table they sat at 20 years ago, now that would have been great. The movie had a lot of potential. It wasn't absolutely terrible, but they kept changing scenes so fast before you could get a feel for what was actually going on. I don't think any of the actors were bad at acting, I just feel like it would have made more sense if they slowed down and took their time making it, maybe added in more details. Give it a try and you may understand where I'm coming from. It wasn't bad but it wasn't great either. They probably would have done better making it a series rather than a movie, but once again they'd need to give more details.

It's a fairly decent directorial debut for newb writer and producer Jon Carlo. Had the story been less convoluted and had more continuity, this could have been a cult classic. At the end you're left shaking your head, and wanting closure.

The 84 min runtime was decent, but the pacing needed improvement, especially due to the "all over the place writing".

The score was decent for a b-film, and the cinematography on point. Casting was good, although I found Ronnie Gene Blevins a little annoying and unconvincing in his role, as was AnnaLynne McCord. Perhaps it was from the inexperience of Carlo directing his cast properly. However, first-time actress Sif Saga as Lexi was outstanding - a real natural I'd say her performance was the best of them all.

Overall an ok one-time watch b-film. It's a 5/10 from me.

The 0 - 3 reviews seem to be written by people who think that every film must include automatic gunfire, CGI explosions or a car chase. Instead of this, Feral State shows what you can do by investing in the script, characters and camerawork: create intrigue and tension - and any film that keeps you watching until the end deserves 5/10 at least. All of the acting seemed fine to me and Ronnie Gene Blevins convincingly holds the whole thing together as the father figure of not just a gang, but also a community. The idea of bumping off miscreants and burying them in the woods (or just leaving them for the crocs) isn't without its appeal either.

Feral State knows it was never designed to be a Hollywood blockbuster and, just like the similar Deathwell, sensibly snips itself off around the 1h 20min mark - just before you've had enough but when you're curious to know more.