Chicago Rot was written and directed by Dorian Weinzimmer and co-written by Brant McCrea. Set in a downtrodden area of Chicago, the film stars McCrea, Shira Barber, and Dave Cartwright. Chicago Rot’s theme is revenge, which is a dish best served cold and surrounded by the blood of those that have wronged you. The film is brilliantly set from the start with Alex (Barber) welling up, providing a reason for the drama that is unfolding.
“After years of rotting in Joliet, Les, a wrongfully imprisoned street legend known as “The Ghoul,” is released into a mad search through Chicago’s back alleys for the man who slaughtered his mother and robbed him of his soul. Aided by enigmatic benefactors, he must delve beneath the city into a modern labyrinth of gutters whose tendrils have grown deep while he was gone. What unfolds is a desperate tale of brute force tragedy set in the supernatural underworld of Chicago, where heroes are reduced to horror-shows, villains dream of their own demise, and good and evil prove to be antiquated concepts.”
We first meet Les, aka The Ghoul (McCrea), looking utterly badass. Zero words leave his mouth, a meaningful walk and an envy-inducing beard to match. Not far behind is Detective Dave Simmons (Cartwright) tailing the marked man. Throughout the film, Les doesn’t really voice much of his mind, mainly as he doesn’t need too. The old saying of actions speak louder than words resonate so well from McCrea’s portrayal of the revenge driven man he’s playing.
When Les gets to put his hands to good use, it’s an absolute gore fest. One of the standout things for me was that CGI took a backseat. When the gore laden scenes rock up, they use props, which makes it a million times better than it would have been using effects. With that being said, it’s not over the top gory. Sure, there’s some brutal parts, but they get the level of gore spot on with the tone of the scene.
Chicago Rot is one of 2016’s Nightmare Film Festival’s stand out films. Brant McCrea was nominated for Best Actor (Feature) and the film itself won Best Thriller (Feature). I can see why. Unlike most films these days, you’ve got it figured out half way through, not this one. I was guessing all the way up to the end.
All in all, Chicago Rot is well worthy of the accolades it received. It keeps you wondering what’s next without dragging it’s heels. Brilliantly directed, brilliantly written and brilliantly acted throughout. This thriller is well worth an hour and 43 minutes of your time.
The film is available on: Amazon, iTunes, Google Play, Vimeo, Xbox, Flix Fling, Vudu, YouTube, and Cable VOD. The DVD is available exclusively on Amazon MOD April 4th, 2017.