VOD Review: Nina Forever (2016)

"True love may indeed die, but it eventually comes back as a bloody, naked zombie."

Every now and then, a movie comes along that defies all expectation. Maybe it's better than anticipated; maybe it delivers something completely unexpected; or maybe it's just so different and unique, that it leaves a lasting impression.

Nina Forever was all of that, and although it's not fair to call it a Horror movie, it was a much-welcomed breath of fresh air for the genre.

I'm not trying to make it sound like it's perfect or anything, but I honestly can't remember the last time a movie upended my expectations like this one did. And I really don't have anything "bad" to say about it.

Man, that's a nice feeling. 

After the tragic death of his girlfriend Nina, Rob is left despondent and suicidal. Holly, the quiet, weird chick that he works with, finds out that he's tried to kill himself, which turns her on, because she's fucking creepy. Rob is drawn to her creepy darkness though (because he's obviously got issues, and she's got a great rack), so they go out on a date.

SHE IS SO DTF.

During their first date sex session, Nina's dead ass emerges from the mattress Hellraiser style, all bloody and mangled. Naturally, Rob and Holly freak the hell out, which seems a pretty reasonable reaction to a dead chick rising out of her ex-boyfriend's mattress to us. The undead Nina makes it immediately clear that she isn't thrilled with the fact that they're doing naked stuff together, because she's still Rob's girlfriend.

"WELL, THIS IS AWKWARD..."

That doesn't stop Rob and Holly from being together though. No, they decide that they "love" each other, and they tell Nina that she needs to move on and leave them to live their lives together. Nina won't leave though, so they decide to ignore her and have sex anyway, eventually trying to lure her into the creepiest threesome ever.

Uncomfortable sexual encounters ensue. 

NO MAN SHOULD LOOK THAT MORTIFIED AFTER A THREESOME WITH TWO BEAUTIFUL WOMEN. POOR GUY.

This one really surprised us. We went into Nina Forever expecting a Black Comedy infused with some bloody zombie goodness, and while it was definitely darkly humorous in its way, and plenty bloody, it felt way more like a somber drama to me. A doomed romance, if you will. As twisted as it is, it's a fairly sentimental movie.

No one dies, no one's in danger... it's almost not even a Horror movie.

Sure, the movie has a zombie in it, and there's no shortage of blood throughout, but that's all just there to get a point across: Loss is terrible to cope with; moving on is difficult, and often times messy; relationships aren't any easier; and there are people out there with unhealthy obsessions, which end up being just as messy. Alright, so maybe it makes multiple points, but it makes them really well.

Nina Forever is definitely an actor's film; there's basically no action to be had here, no kills, no intense sequences of danger, no big set pieces. No, this is a straight-up Romantic Drama about three people caught in a love triangle... although one of them is dead, and she's all sorts of bloody and mangled, and makes a mess whenever she shows up.

Whatever you take away from this movie though, and I imagine that will differ from person to person, it was a really nice change of pace.

Fiona O'Shaughnessy was brilliant as Nina. I say this because she played her character so quiet and understated, and amusingly cynical, that even though she wasn't a true villain, she always seemed menacing. I personally kept thinking of Gary Oldman's haunting voice performance in Baby Blood (1990) while I was watching her work, as she seemed to be channeling the man with her performance. She was great.

Abigail Hardingham and Cian Barry were great as the doomed Holly and Rob as well. Hardingham especially stood out to us; partly because she looked sexy as hell (whether naked or clothed), and because she really made her disturbed character into something multi-layered and special. She reminded us a lot of Ruth Wilson (Luther), which is a pretty big compliment coming from us considering how much we love both the actress and that show.

SHE'S COMMITTED TO MAKE THIS THING WORK!

There's nothing worse than a cock-blocking zombie!

"OH NO, BITCH, HE'S MINE"

I know that most people couldn't go out an buy a new one every day, but man, sleeping on a blood-soaked mattress is just frigging wrong.

MAYBE THERE'S A MATTRESS LIQUIDATOR NEARBY OR SOMETHING?

There's plenty of blood in this movie, all of which come from zombie Nina making a mess all over the place. There's no killing to be had though, so don't expect any sort of traditional zombie action here.

WE CAN ALL AGREE THAT ROMANCE IS GORY IN ITS OWN WAY.

There's wall-to-wall nudity in this one, and no shortage of sex scenes. Fiona O'Shaughnessy was looking a bit too bloody and rough (she was dead, after all) to come off as sexy, but Abigail Hardingham looked great and was naked every two minutes.

BITCH, KEEP YOUR CLOTHES ON!

True love never dies... or creepy girls are always trouble. It's definitely one of those two.

GUESS WHICH GIRL IS THE CREEPY ONE.

I want to say that Nina Forever was a funny and twisted movie, because it is, but I came away from this one feeling far more somber that I did amused. Directors Ben and Chris Blaine definitely threw us a curve ball with this one, and we're glad that they did.

Nina Forever is the best unconventional Horror movie that we've seen so far this year, and it should be on your watchlist. Rent it asap.

B+

Nina Forever is available now on VOD.

Nothing to see here, folks... except for two sexy British birds, that is!