Stake Land

Bleak, somber apocalyptic vampire tale shows America in ruin, having fallen to a bloodsucker plague that has scattered human survivors trying to eke out their own existence/path as civilized society is a distant memory. With the melancholy score and tone—dialogue by the kid waxing poetic about the darkness of the situation going forward—StakeLand lays it on thick with heavy a hand. The American Beauty score is all-encompassing and roads and towns travelled through (that aren’t “protected” by tough guys) show the horrors of “the plague” (along with burned corpses of vampires, trash, and the wreckage of destruction and chaos that resulted from vampires and their need to replenish their bloodthirst). When dialogue has “…sometimes hope is all you got…” you know there’s a conscientious effort to comment on how to cope with dire straits.

 ***

While the need to overdramatize is ever-present (this is a serious film with a sincere effort to convey life in the absolute shitter), my comments might seem to indicate that I wasn’t that fond of StakeLand. That isn’t so. I think this is definitely a film directed by visionaries who looked at StakeLand as a vampire version of The Walking Dead. How does humanity rise from the ashes of apocalyptic doom?

For one thing, I love what the movie does with Danielle Harris. Too often she is saddled with that secondary character sort of muted and out of focus in the background of a plot. Hatchet 2 was good to her, but StakeLand gives her a role with some real meat to it. They have this establishing shot with Harris where she’s singing a ditty in a bar while the Mister and the Kid stop by after escaping “holy rollers” and vampires; the Kid enamored and transfixed with her is sitting later in a rather morose state, eyeing Harris from across the room. Eyes lock, romance is certain to bloom. She’s pregnant, tends the bar when not singing, and is certain to join the duo eventually. What the film seems to imply when their eyes lock never quite comes to fruition because of the situation. Survival seems more important than burgeoning love. The thought of being a tasty treat for a "berserker" or "vamp" is constant; love or lust or sex have a tendency to slide down the scale when it comes to what you deem most important. There was an interesting decision to limit the dialogue for Harris; her pregnancy causes quite a dilemma for the group when she tags along with The Kid and Mister.

The film is more about what we see, the impact of the images as they come, and the dialogue is used sparingly to emphasize how much life sucks when vampires and an evil religious cult take control of America. With The Kid's narrative voice (ever so somber his thoughts, his voice in a tone of low volume, monotone, introspective), we really get a lot of what we need (or do we really need it constantly?) as far as how America fell, and the agony and misery of the situation through one character's perspective.

To further add to my belief that The Walking Dead is a major influence is the dynamic of a group becoming a sort of miniature family that would unlikely bond if the situation wasn't what it was. Mister (Nick Damici) becomes the most unusual of surrogate fathers for The Kid (Connor Paolo), while a nun (played by Kelly McGillis of all people) is picked up by them after sadistic members of The Brotherhood abused her. Later Harris' Belle joins them (the Nun must needs stay with Brotherhood cult leader, Jebedia Loven (Michael Cerveris) so that The Kid can get away from them), with a soldier, Willie (Sean Nelson), left tied in an outhouse, found by the group not long after. In the America of Stake Land, such a harmonious family unit, taking to the high mountains for refuge, and that possibly could lead the path to a place called "New Eden", is short-lived. Vampires are never far behind.

The “holy rollers” the Mister speaks about are actually a dangerous nasty group who claim to be led by God, but their brand of worship isn’t exactly abiding by any obvious moral code. They’re the Brotherhood. In StakeLand, America has territories ruled by various factions. If you intrude upon a particular territory, they have a tendency to destroy or abuse you in any way they so wish. Jebedia Loven is a bald headed sociopath who uses God just because one deity is just as useful as another. God serves a purpose for Loven, merely a tool to excuse his devious behavior. He's a Hitler type, one whose voice has the power to gain favor with the lost sheep with a nasty streak that can be tapped into. Give those with a monstrous nature a leader--and an America in disrepair and no government or leadership to keep the country in unity--and the results could be devastating and nightmarish. We see what he's capable of when Mister and the group find a place absent weapons and somewhat protected (think of a border patrol that temporarily holds artillery until you live their city), a society still civilized, as Jebedia (in control of helicopters that hover in the skies) has his men drop vampires like bombs into it. We see the helpless, no protection to speak of, fall within a manner of minutes. Horrified faces, bodies scampering about, in an instant after some much delight while singing and dancing, and screams. It's quite a defining scene in the film. Damned powerful stuff.

Ultimately, the film is about Mister and The Kid, their journey and the friends they make along the way. The ending, quite sad considering all they've lost, has a father, proud of how far his son's come, leaving him to his own devices. New Eden may just be in sight. There's a bit of hope for a better future. While vampires and Loven might be examples of those wanting to decimate such hope, by the end it still remains. It is better than the alternative, isn't it? Director Jim Mickle definitely has the visual eye to lens his version of Hell on Earth as it relates to the use of the bloodsuckers and the threat every single place human survivors go. But, even more dangerous, is how The Brotherhood can exploit them to further their own ends. Like The Walking Dead's Governor, Jebedia has the ability to gain a crowd's allegiance, and we see how The Brotherhood could use America's fall for all its worth.