Written and directed by Chris Cheeseman, co-directed by Paul Krysinski, who also stars in the film, a very persuasive leech is wreaking havoc in rural Provinstate, 1998. On a mission to expand its horizons, our influential invertebrate enlists the help of the local townsfolk. The Police are soon on the tail of our pesky parasite. Starring: Steff Ivory Conover, Mischa O’Hoski, Daniel James McGee, Malakai Vieira, Sarah Gates and Ryan Brown.
Horror has a great number of classic elements from plot points, types of violence and the way stories progress and Mind Leech uses a number of them to its advantage. Starting with the classic setup of chaos and carnage, it’s a beloved opening of horror to have some canon fodder to set the tone and capabilities of the sinister aspect at work. It then transitions into a fantastic friendship with a great buddy-cop dynamic, a rookie matched with entrenched sheriff vibe. As well as building the feel of a very small community, the atmosphere that it creates is reminiscent of Werewolves Within. It has that key use of violence balanced with a fun, light-hearted side, giving an air of not taking itself too seriously and focusing on entertainment.
The writing has a solid sense of humour, it’s taking a dig at these small towns and throwing back to 1980s cinema. It moves really well and it’s one of the few times you wish the runtime was actually longer. The effects work is strong and minimal, a good use of not overextending itself on the budget and just adding it in here and there when it’s needed to enhance a scene. It does have a penchant for the closeup, which comes into play a touch too often but Chris Cheeseman and Paul Krysinski also play around with the angles enough to offset that. Setting it at Christmas felt a bit unnecessary as it doesn’t really make an impact on the story and its very ending moment feels like a nod to a sequel and while it would be great to see one, it didn’t need to lead into it so strongly.
Steff Ivory Conover and Mischa O’Hoski give great performances, a horror is always better when you’ve got characters you can invest in and they give viewers that. They’re charming, Conover hits the comedic timing really well and creates a character that you’d happily follow for a lot longer than an hour. Co-director Paul Krysinski’s performance is an interesting one, given that he has to spend most of the time being overtaken by the killer leech. The way that he choreographs his movements to fit that lack of control reminds slightly of Vincent D’Onofrio’s Edgar in Men in Black, moving as though you don’t quite fit within that skin.
Mind Leech is really entertaining, it’s fun and also gives the great impression that the cast and crew had fun making it. There’s a hugely enjoyable sense of humour, brought to life by a small but well put together cast. Its directorial style plays around with different angles and framing which keeps a solid movement to it throughout. It’s paced well, it sticks to a short runtime which is always a bonus and it’s a good time.
FilmCarnage.com 