From the director of Beyond the Black Rainbow, comes a wild cinematic journey of love and vengeance. On the surface, it is pretty thin on plot, but what makes the film shine is an incredible aesthetic where every frame is like a painted canvas. The attention to detail is pretty rare these days, or at least the uncompromising vision along with the attention to detail.

Nicolas Cage plays a logger who lives in a remote cabin with his girlfriend, Mandy (Andrea Riseborough). A cult led by an egomaniac decides to take Mandy for their own, but ends up killing her, which creates a monster in the form of raging Cage looking for revenge. Before taking out the cultists, he must first dispatch a group of sinister bikers. The crazy of Nic Cage is perfect for this role, and it’s probably his best performance of the last 20 years.

The film is set in 1983 and it definitely has the feel of that era without being overtly nostalgic. There are also some great throwbacks to the horror of the Hellraiser movies, as well as some David Lynch tonal elements.

The only real downside, other than the simplistic story, was the pacing and length. There were a few times that it kind of lingered when it should have moved on, but honestly, a lot of the lingering added to the build up of tension. Some scenes in the second half were so brutally intense, it was surprising that movies could even accomplish that feat anymore.

Rating: