I spent our last night at the 2017 Indianapolis Days of the Dead just like I did the first one; taking in another screening at their “48 Hour Independent Film Fest!” This time around I’d be seeing Plank Face, an Independent film created by a group of Indianans who’ve managed to put out several genre movies for the past few years. I got my first taste of them here and would categorize them as “B horror films,” though this is not a criticism. I grew up on a steady stream of low budget films that I loved and will forever cherish. In fact, in my home state of Rhode Island, I work with an Independent movie company called Scorpio Films Releasing and consider several of their films to be the hallmark of my movie library.

So let’s talk about Plank Face…

Before the film began, Brian K. Williams and Scott Schirmer provided an introduction. These guys, together, had written, produced, edited, and composed the score for Plank Face. They also mentioned that the gal who wore the bunny mask in the film, Alyss Winkler, was sitting in the audience and that she was with her mother. At this Ms Winkler responded, “Don’t worry guys, it’s gonna be a lot more awkward for me than it will be for you!”

Before the lights dimmed, they informed us that there will be boobs in the film, in fact lots of them. They also forewarned us that the first five minutes was NOT what the film was about. Needless to say, I was intrigued and still paid way too much attention to that opening scene!

As always with my reviews, this is spoiler free! The film starts with a typical slasher type scene featuring a male and female having sex in the woods. Despite the tone, it’s the woods itself that is integral to the plot and you feel its isolation and loneliness before it becomes a stage for survival. The score was very good and I remember commenting to Terror Dave Fuentes that it reminded me of Pink Floyd. The music was also effective at driving many scenes that lacked dialog.

The cinematography was top notch and the shot composition excellent! These filmmakers took their time and the effort shows. There were three female leads whom I can best describe as “ferial.” I should also mention that the wait for  bare breasts isn’t long and, once they’re out, become pretty much a staple. The ladies need a “NEW” man and believe they’ve found one to fit the bill. The story progresses to become an odyssey of torture and survival with the traditional male/female victim roles reversed. You’re never really sure what the full scope of the captive’s role is meant to be: hunter, protector, or possible sperm donor but it’s a painful conversion nonetheless.

This feature is about 1:45 minutes but could easily have been trimmed about ten to twenty minutes, in my opinion. Despite the nudity it was easy to lose interest as some of the scenes did drag on, though it’s worth staying till the end. This is not your typical horror film but, if you’re like me, you prefer your movies unique and interesting anyway.

I give Plank Face 6.5/10 buckets of Blood (and Boobs)!

~Jason Schoolcraft

Coming up…2017 Indianapolis Days of the Dead coverage concludes with John A. Russo’s panel on George Romero.