VENTRIS **** USA 2017 Dir: Carson Griffin. 15 mins
A likeable, fast-paced short shocker centering around the party hijinks of a bunch of teens enjoying a night of sex, booze and virginal losers bonding over the subject of “motor boarding” unobtainable buxom girls. Their fun is interrupted by a crashed meteorite and, following discussion over whether the crater harbours a creature from outer space or…you know…climate change, an endearingly vicious, nose-biting alien-bat puppet thing goes on the rampage.
This slickly produced, frenetic, well shot movie nods affectionately to a range of influences including CRITTERS, THE BLOB and SCOOBY DOO, and has nice incidental touches, including the girl literally drinking from a bottle labelled “death”. The monster is cute and fun, and it builds to a suitably mental climactic massacre with plentiful bloodshed. The highlight is a lovely homage to the immortal blow job sequence from Frank Henenlotter’s BRAIN DAMAGE.
Review by Steven West