Stuart Gordon, considered a master of the horror genre thanks to classics like Re-Animator and Dagon, decides to do a different move in this strange trip to human morals.
"King of the Ants" is about a regular guy, Sean Crawley(newcomer Chris McKenna), a man without any aspiration who just live in his apartment doing the necessary job to live to the next day. In one of his jobs he meets Duke(Gearge Wendt), who introduces Sean to his boss, Ray Matthews(played by Daniel Baldwin). Ray hires Sean as a spy, and orders him to follow Eric Gatlin(Roy Livingstone), an accountant who has been investigating Ray's company. Problems start when Ray, while drunk, orders Sean to kill Eric. And he does it. Things go wrong when Ray decides to make Sean disappear destroying his mind with violent punishment and humiliation.
From the point where Sean kills Eric, we go in the same boat with him, as he goes through a downward spiral of human degradation, traveling from guilt, to confusion and finally to his rebirth, in a state where humanity, morals and values are not important anymore. Chris McKenna acting is very important because he manages to be likable even when he is part of gruesome acts, both as victim and/or criminal. He has that look of innocence that hides a dark side and he manages to carry the film.
The support cast also includes Kari Wuhrer, as Eric's widow who also becomes a central part of Sean's trip to hell. She gives a fine performance, although it's obvious that Sean is the main character. He is the most developed of all and McKenna's performance is up to the challenge.
The film has very disturbing images of violence, and while it may not be as graphic as "Kill Bill" for example, the strength of the violence is in the lack of humanity that the character manifest. He is more than an ant in this world. He is the king.
Stuart Gordon has managed to create a film that, while maybe it's not one of his best efforts; it's very well done, has a VERY interesting story to tell, and manages to capture the attention every second of it.
主演:凯特琳·桑塔·胡安娜,特欧·布里奥尼斯,理查德·哈蒙,欧文·帕特里克·乔伊纳,安娜·洛尔,莱亚·吉斯特德,布瑞克·巴辛格,托尼·托德,艾普尔·特莱克,马克斯·洛伊德-琼斯,艾利克斯·扎哈拉,特拉维斯·特纳,马蒂·芬诺乔,Mark,Brandon,丁波·李,Janelle,Beadall,Panou,Sophia,Chapdelaine,珍妮·克鲁蒂尔,Noah,Bromley
主演:绪方惠美,林原惠美,三石琴乃,宫村优子,山口由里子,山寺宏一,关智一,岩永哲哉,岩男润子,立木文彦,清川元梦,石田彰
主演:濑川亮,清水明日香,武田光兵,芹泽秀明,星野麻雅,松泽莲,高原知秀,矶山沙耶香,正木苍二,冈田秀树,伊藤久美子,菅原卓磨,千叶美加,阿部进之介,智顺,北冈龙贵,赤星升一郎,工藤俊作,油井昌由树,吉田友纪