Review by Peter Syslo
THE EDISON DEATH MACHINE (2006) is a feature from the Kentucky-based production company, ZP International (www.zpmovies.com). Apart from having one of the greatest titles ever, for a horror film, the movie is highly enjoyable and it blends together several different film genres. The movie is part horror, part crime/caper, part action, part comedy, and part science fiction. I know that I said in last week’s reviews that I was sick of seeing martial arts and mafia situations in independent films, but I suspend that comment in light of viewing THE EDISON DEATH MACHINE. It delves into both areas, but they make sense within the story line and they don’t obscure any of the core plot material. What you have with THE EDISON DEATH MACHINE is a fun indie flick which demonstrates why ZP International is a much-talked-about company.
THE EDISON DEATH MACHINE is written and directed by the fast-becoming-an-icon, George Bonilla. The film stars Stacey T. Gillespie, Ashley Arkels, Billy W. Blackwell, Michael Van Zant, Cherokee Hall, and Frank Santoroski.
The movie is about a museum director (Gillespie) who falls prey to a beautiful woman (Arkels); she just happens to be a member of a gang of art thieves. The director unwittingly leads her gang to the valuable artifact section of the museum, where a piece known as The Edison Death Machine is discovered. After the gang kidnaps the director and the machine, they start to consider the true possibilities of using the power of such a machine. They devise a plan to resurrect historical figures, who were buried with jewels and other valuables, in hopes of obtaining and selling the treasures on the black market. But, they soon find that the machine is unpredictable and the results are tragic - not to mention the local mafia also wants a piece of the action! Will the Edison Death Machine be the end of everyone? Tune in and find out.
I really liked this film. I thought that the production value (cinematography, writing, music/audio, atmosphere, set design) was superb, throughout. One of the main things I noticed about the film is that it flowed really well; it had a steady rhythm to it and it was very easy to follow, story-wise. I know I talk a lot about sections of films that “bog down” the surrounding scenes or places where the story “stalls”, but that wasn’t the case with this film. Bonilla is a great storyteller and he seems to have an eye for what a viewer wants to and needs to see. I truly enjoyed the way that he presented this story and I thought that the opening, with a black-and-white short of Edison using his machine, was brilliant – that’s an example of how you “grab” an audience.
Aside from the larger aspects of the film, I thought that the effects were very good. One example is when a woman is shot in the head by the mafia don – you see the blood on her head, she looks over at the don, she collapses face first on the table, and then you see the resultant blood pour out on the table. Scenes like that were pretty realistic. Conversely, some of the effects did not look as good, but still they were quality effects for an independent production. One example is the resurrected pirate (my least favorite scene of the film); the undead look of the face worked on the mummy, the shogun, and the civil war soldiers, but it just looked a little too “fake” on the pirate (though it was a cool makeup design, in and of itself). Other than effects, the acting was basically good, although there were some instances of forced/st iff dialogue delivery. The best performance was given by Billy W. Blackwell as Renee Dubois, the ring leader of the art thieves. He was great in this role – his displayed some mature acting chops and I felt that he was one of the most interesting actors in the production.
Moving on to the things that I didn’t like, I already mentioned the pirate scene and I will explain this further. Apart from the look of the pirate, I just felt that the whole scene did not work and was out of place, with regard to the overall film. The fact that the pirate spoke was also a negative thing; this if no offense to the actor, but the pirate dialogue seemed a little too “campy” for the overall tone of the film. If the pirate didn’t speak or if that scene was cut entirely, I think the film may have benefited. Also, in general, there were some “shaky” elements regarding the rules of the machine and the resurrected corpses. I wasn’t sure what really happened to the mummy and I wasn’t quite sure if the dead were totally invincible; and if the machine was on, were they or were they not able to be destroyed by some measures (a side from the extreme measure in the pirate scene).
Cutting to the chase: THE EDISON DEATH MACHINE was a fun movie to watch. It did have a few negative elements, but the overall picture was well worth it and I do recommend it to anyone who wants to see a fine example of what an independent film company can do. Bonilla and ZP deserve all of the hype and praise that they receive and I want to catch up and see the rest of the ZP catalog. Yes, there must be something in the water in Kentucky ! Some great things are coming out of that state. I give THE EDISON DEATH MACHINE an 8/10.