7TH DAY (2012)

RATED- UNRATED
RUN TIME- 80 MINS
WRITER(S)- MARK LEAKE
STARRING- CHAKA BALAMANI, HELENMARY BALL, AND ALEX BARONE
DIRECTOR- JASON M. KOCH



Synopsis taken from IMDb
A pervert, murderer, and hopeless romantic, Allen Dean is on a a 7-day journey to discover his real true love. He is torn between Denise the waitress, who he believes he loves, and his first true love, murder.

Every now and again, there's a film that'll make you take a step back and shake your head. Such is the case with "7th Day". Even though there's a very good amount of dark humor, some have even compared it to "American Psycho" (2000). But, although there's quite a bit to laugh at, it's not a funny movie in any way. In fact, it's very disturbing due to its realism, and partially why I liked it.

Viewing the film, you're following Allen (Mark S. Sanders) for the duration of a week. In that week, we learn a lot about Allen, and what makes him tick. Very chilling performance, and although the acting wasn't anything of brilliance, it is done effectively. He doesn't understand why he's a psychopath. He thinks he was born the way he is, and truth is, he's just desensatized to all of the trauma that he's undergone. As the viewer, it's clear as day where his problems began and why he is the way he is.

His mother was basically the whore of the neighborhood, his brother did some despicable things to him growing up, and his father committed suicide in a very stomach churning way. Yet, Allen talks about all of this as if he were discussing what he wanted off of a menu at McDonalds. He's so resigned to it all, that he doesn't think it's out of the ordinary or abnormal. So, to subconciously take out his hurt and anger, he enjoys the torture and slaughter of random "selections". Within the week, we see him at his dishwashing job, all the way to how he hunts and stalks his prey. You really get to see all sides of the box with this character, and it's why the movie has the effect it does.

Allen's obsessed with Denise (Daisy Gibb), a waitress from his job. And his relationship with her really shows you how delusional he is. He sees one thing, and thinks something else is going on. You really see how out of touch he is with reality, and it's unsettling and very believable.

Aside from the story, there's also some fantastic visual effects by Aftermath FX Studio who also did work on "V/H/S/2" (2013). There's actually not an abundance of gore shown throughout but, there's plenty to go around in the scenes where it's present and we see Allen at work!

Though the pace seems a bit drawn out at times, and as I mentioned, the acting suffers, but there's still a lot to watch this movie for. Very rarely does a film of this quality achieve the effectiveness that it does. It sounds typical, but you may really want to wash your hands after giving it a watch. It leaves you with an uncomfortable feeling...

The overall presence of this film is one that you won't forget. Despite its flaws, it'll stick with you and really get under your skin. The realism of it really sets everything off, and works very well. Give it a shot when you can find it, and prepare yourself. It's not the grossest or most disturbing thing you'll ever see, but it's one you'll talk about, for sure.