“The Welder”
Movie Review
The film "Welder," directed
and co-written by David Liz and Manuel Delgadillo, stars Camila Rodriquez,
Vincent De Paul, Roe Dunkley, and Crist Moward and follows Roe and Eliza, a
young couple on a weekend getaway, who come face to face with the harrowing
experiments of a former doctor bent on curing the social blight of racism.
Camila Rodriguez's Eliza runs through the rain as voices yell in the
background. It's disorienting, like something out of a nightmare, and that's
exactly what it is. Eliza is sleepwalking, and only the timely arrival of her
boyfriend Roe played by Roe Dunkley prevents her from walking into a lake.
Roe books them a weekend at a ranch
he saw online after remembering how much fun he had at his grandparents' ranch,
hoping it will help reduce her stress levels. Of course, we all know that won't
happen.
The first act is packed with ominous
scenes, such as Eliza's nightmare, shots of a man chopping up raw meat and
leaving it in the woods, missing person posters on the way to the farm, and so
on. And the farm's owner, played by Vincent De Paul, and handyman Don, played
by Crist Moward, are both creepy.
Something sinister is clearly going
on, but The Welder is up to more than just scaring people. Eliza and Roe are a
mixed-race couple, and in a flashback, we learn that William's now-deceased
wife was African American. He devoted himself to ending racial hatred after her
death, which is a noble cause, but what can one man in the middle of nowhere
do? Does the film's website describe it as "Frankenstein" meets
"Get Out" give you have any ideas?
As you might expect, this results in
a very mixed message. One that could be interpreted as a condemnation of
anti-racist activism and mixed marriages. Because in The Welder, those who
believe racism is wrong are insane, and mixing races results in literal
monsters. Liz and Delgadillo clearly didn't think it through completely when
writing the script, but they ended up way off track.
When viewed solely as a horror film,
The Welder fared slightly better. Despite the heavy-handed foreshadowing, Liz
manages to create a fair amount of tension by the time the couple arrives at
the ranch. Unfortunately, it quickly unravels as it becomes clear that Dr.
Godwin is indeed playing God. There's nothing wrong with modernizing the
Frankenstein story. However, the methods employed here are ridiculous and would
be more appropriate for a bad spoof than a serious film.
Despite the plot, there isn't much in
the way of effects, with the exception of some bloody stumps that are both
practical and convincing. Given the potential of a madman wielding a welding
torch, it's a shame the budget didn't allow for more. It would have at least
helped to justify its inclusion in the film.
The Welder is a well-executed
technical achievement. Liz has a background in cinematography, which is evident
in several drone shots emphasizing the ranch's remoteness and some creepy
camerawork in the forest and the old house. James Hall's sound design is
excellent, adding a gruesome touch to several scenes.
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