Cryptic Plasm is the latest flick from underground gore guru Brian Paulin. Paulin has been on a mean streak with a string of gore films that should go down as classics for years to come. Films like Fetus are exactly what I look for in horror. It sported a plot that was unique and effects that were enough to make the unsuspecting guests at my house gag. Even though his previous effort Blood Pigs suffered from a frame rate difficulty it was still easy to look past it with the inventive ideas and crazy ambitious nastiness that was brought forth. This is something you can always anticipate when going into one of Paulin's films. Ambition is never an issue and luckily unlike many others who can get a little too ambitious for their own good, Paulin actually has the talent necessary to pull off the insane ideas he comes up with.
The film follows a two man crew on a cryptozoologist show. In Search of Sasquatch style. Unlike most of these shows everywhere these guys go the footage delivers the goods. After a few successful shoots in various locations the crew makes their way into an abandoned town. An immediate eerie feeling washes over them when they step foot in the ghost town. Rightfully so, the sight itself is creepy. Houses still appear to look as though they would in any neighborhood. Cars decorate all the driveways and upon entering a house it appears that everyone was evacuated very abruptly.
David and his camera man soon realize that this may not be the case at all. A government evacuation seems likely upon first glance but once the crew sees something they can't unsee the situation seems to be much more complex. While investigating in one of the homes David catches a double of himself roaming around the house. He then freaks out big time and runs for the woods. The crew heads home shaken to the core. Unfortunately for our duo, you can't just leave this town and forget about it. It sticks with you and once you visit it just gets worse and worse as time goes by.
I'll refrain from going much deeper on plot but there's actually a lot of it crammed in for a 75 minute film. Soon after leaving the ghost town the slow descent into hell begins for the two leads. Cryptic Plasm wastes no time turning from slightly strange, to a fucking surreal nightmare. Paulin's effects skills are displayed in completely balls out fashion. This flick gets very INTENSE towards the end. So many great effects are packed into to the final act that it is truly mindblowing. I'd recommend many filmmakers to watch the final moments of this movie and take some damn notes. We need some more of this ambition in horror in general, independent and mainstream alike.
Overall Cryptic Plasm is an amazing horror flick. Brian Paulin has done it yet again. Much like the early work of Clive Barker and even underground greats like Olaf Ittenbach, Paulin manages to use his effects skills to make the viewer feel as though they've entered a whole new world. Seeing what he can do on such a low budget is astounding but I couldn't even begin to imagine the kind of epic he could create with a million dollars at his disposal. It's too bad the mainstream is all too ready to throw their money in the wrong places. I can't praise his work enough. In this day and age many low budget filmmakers are so prepared to go the self aware cheesed up horror comedy route. While there is a place for that it is great to have people like Paulin and a few others keeping a balance in this area. This is serious horror for serious horror fans with a hefty amount of gore to back it up. Even if you're not one to normally one to give horror on a budget a shot I'd still recommend giving this one a watch. GET IT.
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