IT'S IN THE BLOOD (2012)

Studio:       Monarch Home Entertainment
Director:    Scooter Downey
Writer:       Sean Elliot, Scooter Downey
Producer:  Sean Elliot, Scooter Downey
Stars:     Lance Henriksen, Sean Elliot, Rose Sirna, Jimmy Gonzales

Review Score:

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Summary:

A father and son confront haunting memories from their past while a sinister creature stalks them in the woods. 

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Synopsis:     Show/Hide Spoilers

A young man named October studies books on medicine and survival using his photographic memory. He hitchhikes to his father’s remote house in the country. When he arrives, he has a flashback to when his father Russell brought home a girl named Iris to live with them. October visits Iris’ grave before hearing Russell’s dog Cairo caught in an animal trap. October tries tending to the injured canine, but Russell shoots Cairo with his shotgun out of mercy.

While driving together, Russell points to the sheriff’s badge embedded in his gunstock and mentions his former wish that October would inherit the title. Russell teaches October how to drive a stick shift. As they hike through the woods, father and son hash over past differences. Russell challenges his son to rid himself of the millstone around his neck. Russell sees a creature in the woods, fires from the hip, and tumbles off a ledge. He breaks his leg.

October drops Russell’s gun in the water while dragging his father to a clearing. A figure in the woods sparks another memory of October’s romance with Iris. A man named Michael, later revealed to be Russell’s deputy, is shown stalking Iris. Russell and October are forced to camp in the rain. Russell tells his son that he saw something in the woods and October needs to go and find the gun. October searches, but returns empty handed.

Russell learns that October is a cutter. Russell has a flashback of not taking Iris’ concerns about Michael seriously. The monster drags Russell into the trees, but he is able to break free by using his knife. October builds a ring of spears to surround their camp as protection. Father and son continue their discussion.

Russell opens his bullets and puts all of the gunpowder in a sock. October finds the gun he dropped in the water and has a flashback to when Michael raped Iris while October was tied up after a beating. Russell sees the creature approaching and drops the sock in the fire. October runs back to the camp after hearing the explosion. The gun is broken. October realizes that gangrene has set into Russell’s leg so he amputates the infected limb. Following another discussion, Russell removes the sheriff’s badge from the gunstock.

October waits in a tree branch above Russell. As the creature draws near, the lighter in October’s hand fails to spark their trap. Another flashback reveals that Russell arrived at the scene where Michael held October and Iris captive. At gunpoint, Michael forced Russell to choose which of his children would live and which would die. As Michael pointed the gun at October, Russell exclaimed, “please don’t shoot my son!” At this point, Michael shot and killed Iris. In the present, October finally lights a flame and ignites a fire that that repels the monster. Russell dies. October puts Iris’ necklace around his father’s body and puts it in the water where the creature takes it. October uses the diversion to flee into the trees and escape.

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Review:

Two tales are told concurrently in “It’s in the Blood,” the story of a father and son confronting threats both tangible and intangible.  Lance Henriksen is Russell, the grizzled country sheriff resigned to a life of relatively quiet solitude.  Sean Elliot is his estranged son October.  With a wedge driven between them from a past family tragedy, October has occupied his life as a drifter.  Returning to the homestead after an extended absence, father and son embark on an uneasy weekend of reconciliation.  Their situation becomes dire when they are caught in the woods and stalked by a mysterious creature.

The only horror movie character more clichéd than the backwoods country sheriff is the masked stalker.  Putting an estranged son on the lawman’s family tree is not breaking new ground either.  But “It’s in the Blood” takes these two boilerplate archetypes and fills them with unique personas, led by a Lance Henriksen performance that is a reminder of how much the veteran actor brings to the table, even when playing a familiar trope.

As the dynamic between the two men is established, it is partially unclear what the story is going to be about.  The part of the film that takes place in flashbacks unfolds gradually.  While October was still a boy, Russell brought home a little girl named Iris to join the family.  There is no mention of a formal adoption, and the details of her addition to the clan are left unexplained.  Despite being a stepsister of sorts, Iris and October begin a romance that rings sweet, not incestuous.  In adulthood, her life is taken by a manmade tragedy, the nature of which changes the tie between father and son.

In the present day thread, Russell and October’s long overdue reunion lands them caught in the woods after Russell breaks his leg.  Unfortunately for them, the possibility of a gangrenous infection is soon to be the least of their worries when a shambling shape makes itself known.  There may be a creature lurking in the trees, with father and son as prey, but “It’s in the Blood” is not a pure monster movie.  That literal menace is meant to parallel the figurative demon from their shared past that troubles their psyches.  Both monsters are dangerous.

Each story is told simply, with the backstory delivered via very little dialogue.  The plotline from the past is straightforward, yet “It’s in the Blood” has enough confidence in its audience’s intelligence to trust that small snippets are enough to deliver the big picture.  It is a satisfying slow reveal regarding Iris’ fate.  Although the danger coming her way is telegraphed early, the way it plays out is chilling and heartbreaking.  The girl’s screentime is scant, but her death carries a real emotional resonance that emphasizes each man’s suffering.

The visual depiction of that storyline melds into the present day woodland threat as the appearance of dangers both in the mind and in the trees are given dreamlike effects.  October and Russell are trapped in endless isolation and that atmosphere is manifested effectively through imagery that blends the two realities together.

However, while both threads are engaging, there is an unsatisfying disconnect when they finally merge.  Given the way that each storyline unravels in tandem, it seemed that the two were going to cross paths with a more literal connection.  That is not the case.  The threat from the past and the threat from the present share a relation only in the minds of the men.  With the film successfully building suspense and mystery through its narrative technique, it is a letdown that the payoff keeps the stories separate.  In actuality, these were just two men haunted by a ghost as they also happened to find themselves haunted by a different entity in the present.

The terrific performance by Lance Henriksen stands out amongst everything else, bad and good, in the film.  Whether swatting insects or pretending to be a woman having an orgasm (yes, really), Henriksen showcases a range of acting skills both subdued and overt.  He has genuine chemistry with Sean Elliot as his son and grabs an assist from well crafted and expertly delivered dialogue.  On the relationship with his wife: “We made a kind of deal that we both could live with.  I was the gas and she was the brake.”  His monologue comparing television static to ants fighting lends his character a lived-in quality that perfectly suits the role.  This is a man that tells the whole story of a hard life through a singular expression.

Small budget independent horror films often do not possess this much artistry.  The film drowns under too much of it in places, but it has far more successes in creating moody chills and a tenderly grim backstory.  There could have been a more visceral connection between the two tales, although the pacing and performances still make them both gratifying.  “It’s in the Blood” is a must-see for Lance Henriksen fans.  And really, shouldn’t that be just about everybody?

Review Score:  70

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