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 lthough genre fans mostly know him as a horror
filmmaker, Stuart Gordon's "King of the Ants" is most definitely
not a horror film -- at least not in the traditional sense. But if you
were to delve deep enough, I suppose the film's horrific interpretation of
human nature gone amok (or is that liberated?) could be considered horror
in its most animalistic terms. There's certainly nothing un-horrific
about a grown man using the head of a fellow human being to practice his
golf swing. Oh sure, the guy might claim it's all for the purpose of
eliciting information, but one suspects the gratuitous torture has less to
do with getting said information than it is a need to maim for the sake of
maiming.
Chris McKenna stars as Sean, a young man drifting
between jobs painting houses. After a chance encounter -- or was it? --
with Norm -- er, I mean, Duke (George Wendt), Sean "lucks" into
a job offer from shady construction businessman Ray (Daniel Baldwin). The
job: follow a city official (Ron Livingston) around town. All goes fine,
until one day Sean spots the official's pretty wife Susan (Kari Wuhrer)
and falls immediately in lust. It isn't long before Ray comes to Sean with
another officer: kill the official in exchange for cash. Being that he's
an aimless bloke without any prospects, Sean accepts, but only after
stuttering his way to a meager cash settlement of $13,000.
At this point it's next to impossible to talk about
"King of the Ants" in any detail without spoiling its three
acts. As a narrative, "Ants" is straightforward; if anything,
writer Charlie Higson, adapting from his own novel, follows the 3-act
structure almost to the "T". Sean is recruited in Act I; the bad
guys turn on him in Act II; and Act III provides a faux resolution before
the real resolution -- i.e. Sean's retribution on his tormentors. So I
don't think I'm spoiling too much by saying that after he's double-crossed
by Duke and Ray, Sean is tortured for days. After escaping his captors,
Sean manages to worm his way into Susan's life, but predictably, this
doesn't last.
"King of the Ants" marks a departure for
Stuart Gordon. The man who has given us wacky horror films like "Re-Animator"
and some straight gothic-themed ones ("Dagon")
has found real human nature to be scarier than made-up goblins.
"Ants" looks every bit like the independent film that it is,
with no Hollywood gloss to be found. Gordon has elected to shoot the film
almost exclusively with handheld cameras, which at times gives the movie a
cinema verité feel. When the torture starts, the barebones look of the
movie serves it well, bringing through the feel of dread and utter fear
that the main character is suffering through.
If "Ants" is an "R" film, then it
must be a strong "R". "King of the Ants" is not only
violent, but the violence is shown in such stark, in your face detail that
it may unsettle some viewers. Most definitely benefiting from its lack of
a Hollywood budget, "Ants" couldn't have worked if the sets were
too polished or the cameras too "steadycam'med". This movie is not
for children. Or anyone with a weak stomach for that matter. The tortures
are graphic and the results on Sean are not the least bit pretty. By the
end of the ordeal, you'd be hardpressed to recognize the "face"
of our anti-hero.
A lot of credit for what makes "King of the
Ants" work goes to relative newcomer Chris McKenna, who gives an
excellent performance as Sean. McKenna does brilliantly as a character
that is far from sympathetic, not to mention proving to be every bit as
immoral when the price is right, or when something he wants is on the
line. There's very little doubt that Sean knows his own nature, even if it
takes brutal torture to make him realize it. Although he was approached to
perform his misdeeds, it's readily apparent Ray and Duke are just
enablers, and not the cause of Sean's sociopathic urges.
Rounding out the cast is perennial B-grade players
Daniel Baldwin (younger brother of Alec) and Kari Wuhrer (looking very
natural these days). Of note is the villainous turn by George Wendt, who
was so believable as the nasty and vile Duke that I quickly forgot his
character from "Cheers". Norm is dead, my friends. Of the
supporting cast, Wuhrer has less to do, appearing briefly in the beginning
and then disappearing almost completely until the third act. The same goes
for Baldwin and his two employees-slash-hoods. Who knew over-the-hill
construction workers were so ready to commit such terrible crimes?
"King of the Ants" is not your average
Stuart Gordon film. If anything, it's probably Gordon's most ambitious
movie in terms of characters. While some of the movie does seem
unnecessarily gratuitous -- Wuhrer's sex scene and multiple full frontal
nudity by McKenna comes to mind -- much of the film really needs to be
shot as is to be effective. It's not a pretty movie by any stretch, but
then again neither is its subject matter.
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