Review by Josh Felty
"Quiet Nights of Blood and Pain" starts out with a war-protesting couple making out after a stroll through Christmas lights. Of course, with such a name their bliss is short lived as they're met with a violent end by a camo fatigues-wearing assailant. We find out that this murderer is a scarred war veteran. His idea of a calm, wintry night is one of retribution and "wrong-righting". You know, good old-fashioned American values.
What surprised me most about this one is that despite the title, "Quiet Nights" is more concerned with storytelling than blood-letting. I went into this thinking it would be nothing but a splatterfest. And while gore is sometimes an indie horror flick's only saving grace (though there are some exceptions that truly boggle the mind), you can't help but assume this one would be full of nothing but blood and guts and other creepy-crawly elements. Just goes to show, never judge a book by its cover.
Soon after the opening scenes, we meet another war veteran, Adrienne. Sure the acting's kind of corny in parts, but I like that they poured some thought and reality into this lead character. Adrienne finds support for her post-traumatic stress disorder with other veterans in a support group. She's dealing with her problems in a real way, though she may not be getting the answers and relief she needs. She and her vengeful counterpart manage to run into one another, but that's toward the end so I'll leave that scene alone. I like that the director took the time to show the parallels between Adrienne and the male killer-vet's way of dealing. One should be able to look past the budgetary shortfalls of a movie if the story is there. Let Hollywood do what they do and throw in all the lens flares and CGI they can muster; truth is, half of them could never hold a candle to the subject matter you find in the indies. No good people, indie is not dead...it's alive! Alive I tell you!
I also appreciated the way the director, Andrew Copp, portrayed Adrienne's war flashbacks. It could have really been quite hokey in someone else's hands. Adrienne turns down a dark path to quiet the sounds of automatic gunfire and helicopter blades; and her attempt at recovery is quite believable. There's a lot of talk about the way veterans are treated (and have been treated) after returning from war. Such a thing bears a lot of weight, considering our current situation in Iraq and Afghanistan. The back of the DVD says "...politically charged..." and to that end I have to agree; without bringing my own political views into this, I will say this: "Quiet Nights" is more a political, psychological thriller than a slasher movie.
While there are many kills in this (though I wouldn't go as far as the back of the DVD goes to call it "Giallo styled") "Quiet Nights" is more interested in spinning a yarn that could definitely be going on out there. We don't realize how much the people who defend our country, our freedom, and our way of life have gone through. Especially as we sit back and enjoy our iced frappuccino and muse at how much this or that is gonna hurt our bank account. You realize that the battlefields are all around us (I can hear Pat Benetar queuing up in my head), not just in the Middle East or wherever. Most of the time, they are within ourselves. And sometimes that's a dangerous thing. 8/10