And He Walks (2009)

Credits / Details

47%
Overall Rating

Ranked #18,959
...out of 20,704 movies

Genres: Horror Horror Comedy Slasher Film

Let's take some time out from our hectic lives to meet the Brenneman family. Brian is the dutiful son of Amos, married to his bitchy wife Michaela. Norris is the breast-obsessed son, eager to get his flat-chested wife Gwendolyn implants. And Napoleon...who can forget him? He's nuts, addicted to pills and booze. These are the people assembled at the home of patriarch Amos, who recently passed away of a heart attack. But, what's a father to do who is disappointed in the greed and arguing that his death has revealed in his loving children? It's easy for Amos. Come back to life and teach them a lesson they won't ever forget! --Official Site

Review by Chad
Added: March 17, 2009

My first (and prior to this film, only) introduction to the work of Wilbur Scott came courtesy of Delicious, a film that I wasn't overly impressed by. However, this is a guy that you simply have to give an "A" for effort to: according to his official site, he's cranked out an average of two or three movies per year since 1991 (thirteen movies in 1992 alone). Based on the two films that I've seen, it seems as though he simply casts his friends and family while shooting his films on a budget of beers and meals... and if he can't find anyone to fill the required roles, he'll simply slap on a wig or a fake beard and play the parts himself. This mindset doesn't produce award-winners, but you have to give the guy credit for doing what he loves and sticking with it.

And He Walks centers around an older religious gent (Wilbur Scott) who kicks back for a night with the bible, when out of nowhere, he keels over and dies courtesy of a heart attack. His three brothers (Wilbur Scott, Wilbur Scott, and Wilbur Scott) are summoned to the house the next day to take care of their father's final wishes, but unfortunately for them, the coroner is on vacation and they are forced to store the body in the basement for a few days. Of course, the weeping and the memories don't last for too long, as these boys weren't too fond of their father and only showed up for a chance at his fortune. This is where things get interesting; you see, Papa Scott has come back to the world of the living and is exposed to his family's true opinion of him, and thus, he sets out on a murderous rampage of revenge.

In case you didn't notice, this film is similar to the aforementioned Delicious in that Wilbur Scott (who also wrote and directed) plays a variety of roles with the help of a little editing. It's nothing overly complicated: he apparently shot one side of the conversation, then changed clothes and slapped on a fake mustache before shooting the other side of the conversation and edited it all together after the fact. It actually worked out much better than one might expect, as Scott was able to give each character a little something to differentiate them from the others aside from the obvious wigs, mustaches, and beards - his outing as the "slow" brother was hilarious, while his portrayal of the asshole sibling was also enjoyable.

As far as the storyline goes, the plot synopsis above tells you everything that you need to know with the exception of one thing: this is not a slasher flick, nor would I even firmly place it in the horror genre. It has the elements, sure, but it's more of a comedy than anything else. I do have to admit that I was longing for the unique aspect of "supposedly dead father finally sees what his family truly thinks of him" angle played up a little more, but that wasn't to be as the majority of the film deals with said family squabbling with one another. Daddy dearest merely shows up from time to time to add another kill to the list, and truth be told, he could just as easily have been a random serial killer with a tweak here and an edit there.

There are also some pacing issues on display here, as even though this is a feature-length film, it could have told its tale in thirty or forty minutes. It seems as though the filmmakers came up with this single concept of a resurrected father and his bickering children and tried to make it last far longer than it had any right to. It's not as bad as it could have been, as again, two out of three of the brothers are amusing and bring a good deal of laughs; however, a tighter running time could have improved the film considerably.

With these complaints made, I think that it's only fair to point out that this was obviously not a film that was taken too seriously while shooting - it's meant to be a lighthearted affair that pulls some laughs, nothing more, nothing less. For example, one scene finds Napoleon (the mentally challenged brother) verbally running down the wife of one of the other brothers. This scene was damned funny... so funny, in fact, that the actress that he was talking to also started laughing. Instead of redoing the scene to get the expected reaction out of her, Scott chose to shoot another scene with her proclaiming that "I'm laughing, but I still hate you!" and edit it into the mix. It may have been unintentional, but I think I enjoyed that method more than I would have enjoyed a reshoot and a "proper" reaction.

While far from a great film, And He Walks is an oddly enjoyable affair that was better than I expected given my previous experience with Delicious. I'm not sure that I'd recommend everyone run out and chase this one down, but if you're a fan of no-budget comedy mixed with the slightest hint of horror, you'll likely enjoy this one to a certain degree. 6.5/10.

#1: WIlbur Scott - added March 17, 2009 at 4:39pm
Thanks for the review! "And He Walks" was a very enjoyable film to make. I do have to give the cast (Melissa Green, Tim Sabin, Wayne Ritenbergh, and Sariah Rebah) a great deal of credit for their hard work, as well as all of those behind the scenes. I haven't ever enjoyed acting in my own films, especially now that I am getting older and it's a lot of hard work! But the comment rings true, when I can't find someone, I just slap on the disguises and play them myself. We're just a small outfit here in Michigan that gets together for a few weeks a few times a year and do what we love, and if others find our work enjoyable, that makes it all worthwhile!
Thanks again!
Wilbur Scott

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