Wither (2013)

From the Swedish guys that brought us Blood Runs Cold -the ultra-cheap slasher flick that cost only $5000 U.S. to make- comes what I think just might be the Swedish version of The Evil Dead.

When I say that, I don't mean that it's anywhere near as good (nor that it will become as beloved as) Raimi's 1981 Cult Classic, but just that the two flicks are very similar in theme and plot. The mechanics of the two flicks, however, are very different.

This time around, Sonny Laguna and Tommy Wiklund had about $50, 000 U.S. to play with, and their leap in budget shows; as much credit as they deserve for making Blood Runs Cold on such a tiny, tiny budget, they deserve even more credit for Wither, because it's a much better film.

That's not to say that it's a great movie, because it certainly has its faults and issues, but it was a pretty enjoyable watch despite its shortcomings.

A group of friends head out into the deep Swedish woods for a Holiday full of partying (yeah, that plot again), only to find that a creature of Swedish Lore called a Vittra lives in the cellar, and thus their Holiday is officially screwed.

If you're a tiny, cute little slip of a girl, would you be climbing down into the cellar of creepy cabin to play a joke on your friends? Us either, but that's exactly what happens here, and that foolish action leads to some kind of crazy Supernatural infection in which the friends chew each others faces off, beating each other into puddles of wet body parts, hacking each others heads off, and even killing themselves to escape the terror.

That's basically it. Once the first friend is attacked, the plot goes out the window and the rest of the movie is basically one big gory action set piece. We're not really complaining, we're just sayin'.

Who needs a plot when you have that?

For a movie made for around $50k (U.S.), Wither is a fun little ride that we're glad we took. It's an over-the-top and overtly gory film, that still manages to pack in a few chills here and there for good measure. The creatures in this movie look pretty creepy, and if you can ignore the occasional cheesy growl from them, they make for a formidable menace.

Wither is competently made, and it's a much better offering than most micro-budgeted Horror flicks that seem to get made hand-over-fist these days. Maybe that's because this one actually feels like a movie, and not like something that a gang of pals got together and recorded with their camera phones while drinking cheap beer and smoking skunk weed, dude.

You know what, we'll take it.

Hmm, seems familiar...

The story is a bit simple, and it borrows liberally from The Evil Dead, save for the black humor which there wasn't much of here. The acting isn't that great, and some of the characters/creatures actions felt kind of off, but for a movie done on the cheap, it wasn't all that bad.

Had the filmmakers spent a little more time fleshing out their script and making it a bit more original, Wither would have been a truly kick-ass little flick.

Oh, and the ending was a bit of a letdown.

Who are you people?

Wither's big selling point, and its strongest attribute as a film, is its gore content; this movie is wet and red all over, and there are no shortage of nasty gore gags here to keep Horror fans entertained. I'm pretty sure that all of it was practically applied, because such a small budget just wouldn't allow for any CGI work, and that's a great thing.

Sweden, fuck yeah!

People still head out into the deep, isolated woods to party, even after so many years of Horror flicks that warn so strongly against. Shame on them.

Don't you cry, you knew exactly what this was!

If you go into this one thinking that it's the Swedish version of The Evil Dead, then you'll be alright; mainly because both films were made on the cheap, and both are ultra-gory and fun. Sure, Wither may not have Bruce Campbell, but most flicks don't, and we try to enjoy those, right? No matter which way you slice it, Wither (Vittra) is a fun, messy, nasty little flick that will please the inner Gorehound of most Horror fans.  Give it a watch. You could do way worse.

C+

Lisa Henni is in this. Unless you're Swedish, you probably won't know who in the hell she is, but beauty is International, so just enjoy her face.