Bullies in an American High School, coupled with the target of a kid with a single mother from a trailer park, are staples of many a horror film over the years, notably in classic Stephen King adaptations like CARRIE (1976) and CHRISTINE (1983) – and decades on the stakes have not changed – as we witness in the new horror-noir THE UNHEALER.
Kelly (Elijah Nelson) doesn’t eat what Carrie White does, but has the nickname of ‘Trash Boy’, given that he appears to eat anything and everything else on the menu, be it paper cups or other recyclables whenever and wherever he can. His friend Dominique (Kayla Carlson) takes sympathy on him amidst the ongoing bullying, given that he and his mother Bernice (Natasha Henstridge, SPECIES) were kind on her arrival in the rural town where they reside.
The geek needs some sustenance for his diet – and it comes in the form of con-artist Pflueger (Lance Henriksen), who desecrates a Shaman grave and takes some of the healing potential from the vines and leaves in the plot, despite warnings from a local Indian resident looking after the grave (Branscombe Richmond).
Seeking Pflueger’s help, Bernice brings him to see Kelly at their home and – after paper crossing his palm – Pflueger performs a ritual on Kelly, which renders him seemingly invincible, with the effect that whoever hits him gets hurt even more, a discovery that makes Kelly gain much valued confidence….
Here is one of my picks of recent horror offerings – a familiar horror scenario reworked with dividends thanks to director Martin Guigui’s solid hand and a great script from co-writers Kevin E. Moore and J. Shawn Harris. The film echoes cult 1980s films like THE WRAITH (1987) in terms of the usage of an rural community where the open road provides both solace and seclusion.
A simple concept and set-up provides the basis for some interesting gore-laden pay-offs, helped by an attractive young cast and solid back up from the ever-reliable legend Henriksen who continues to raise his stake as a versatile talent that never seems to retire.
