Givers of Death introduces audiences to a pandemic and several surprises. Writer, director and star Addison Henderson lends his talents as a giver of death, so to speak. Henderson plays a mysterious hire-hand named Phog who is surviving in a world where a virus has wiped out 2/3s of the people. The deadly virus seems to peel off people’s flesh and skin.
If that wasn’t gross enough, some dude like Phog gets paid to exterminate the infected (usually by the infected themselves). Without giving too much away, it is heavily implied that Phog lost his family to the viscous, skin-eating pandemic. This has caused the hitman to have a set of issues. But what compelling character doesn’t have an array of misfortunes and problems that haunt them?
Now let’s get into the nitty-gritty of what works, or doesn’t, about Givers of Death. For the most part, the sci-fi thriller has a lot to be proud of. It has plenty of heart and emotional resonance that compliments the actors’ performances. The city’s landscape, always encased in an always-overcast sky, is often viewed as a dark and dismal component, similar to The Walking Dead.
“…Phog gets paid to exterminate the infected…”
The visual style is something that needs to be revered and studied by future filmmakers hoping to create a neo-horror apocalyptic film. The sleek and bleak background foreshadows a certain doom and chaos that surrounds each character from the very beginning. The foggy haze of disbelief and gloom never seems to lift. There are enough full-throttle thrills and surprises to keep the audience on edge. But Henderson includes a touch of heart to be found within his creation’s macabre core.
That isn’t to say that Givers of Death is bereft of any faults during its runtime. The story starts out pretty well but fails to keep audiences enraptured in the final act. It’s almost like it built itself up, only to be torn down at the eleventh hour. This could have been easily fixed with some better writing and a more clever device for the characters towards the end. I’ll leave audiences to ponder what they thought of the misshapen ending, but without spoiling anything, certainly, I was not too fond of it.
Givers of Death is almost like something out of a Zdzislaw Beksinski painting. I would have been happy to pay the necessary twelve dollars for a movie ticket to experience the visuals and the performances. Yes, I’d pay, even if it means falling asleep during the last scene. The actors do a remarkable job with the work that they are given. It’s no easy feat working on planned sets, in the heat or cold, with, possibly, some prosthetic makeup plastered onto your face for the duration of the shoot. However, I’m still a little saddened because the film could have been so much better.
