Unnatural (2024)


REVIEWER RATING: 
7/10

DIRECTOR:

CAST:


I’m officially convinced that John Wells can do no wrong…even as a blood-sucking villain in a remote Western town. It’s become a personal challenge to find his flaws…but I’m still searching. Haha!

Unnatural begins on a rather hokey-ish note…gunslinger Dan Remington (the snippy Al Snow) appears at a little house on the prairie during a werewolf home invasion which results in the savage death of two teenagers’ parents.

When the gruff visitor saves the tykes from their own imminent death, he’s introduced as their long-lost grandfather who was passing through the countryside on his “mission from god”. Sounds like a page pulled from The Blues Brothers, huh?

While this is anything but a Belushi party film, the grimness lifts to a more light-hearted journey into a small western town where the locals live on edge and the sheriff (a ruthless Wells) is nowhere to be found until after sunset. Curiously, Remington feels the need to squat for the night to fulfill his destiny and hunt the monsters he’s been instructed to destroy. Not werewolves this time. We are in search of vampires!

The quick wit of Whit (Whitman)’s writing – yes, I went there - is evident throughout Unnatural as the standoffs between uninvited guests and the town deputies escalate to the ultimate clash once Sheriff Hawken returns from his “trip”, to confront the reunited Remington family. Now, we learn the hidden secrets coveted by the tenants such as shop owner Jennifer who would love nothing more than to escape the madness of control that latches her to both the town and Hawken.

The violence is minimal, the fear is overrun by supernatural forces and yet, you’ll be absorbed by the banter amongst good vs evil throughout the otherwise sleepy nature of Unnatural. But in conclusion…this just works.

OVERALL: 
Scene stealer Wells leads the charge from his dreaded gaze at the Remington children, to the revealing enigma that plagues his new existence when confronted by Jennifer’s disdain for his immortality. It’s so fetching to watch his turmoil surface and rage upon the one person with whom he had declared to protect. But we cannot negate the spot on performance by Snow whose banter with his grandchildren provides a real and refreshing dynamic during the most troubling situations. Unnatural is packed with danger, humor, paranormal oddities and the most likeable characters I’ve seen in a western horror film. Don’t overlook the “Foreigner”! I dare you NOT to enjoy his bizarreness.


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