I have a habit of trying to avoid any kind of synopsis before watching a film for review, and sometimes that works out for the best. I figured purely from the title that Immortal would be a vampire film and so I was very happy to find out that this was actually an anthology. I do love anthologies, and it had been a while since I last saw one, with Immortal you have four different short films, all revolving (surprisingly enough) around the idea of immortality.
There is no wrap-around story to be had here, but no wrap-around can be better than a poorly executed one and so that wasn't an issue for me. All four short films were written by Jon Dabach, and the first of these was Chelsea. Chelsea was directed by Rob Margolies (The Lodger), the titular character (Lindsay Mushett) is a promising athlete at her high school, but one day as she is leaving for home she is abducted. She awakens in dense woodland where a man (who claims to be immortal) informs her that he plans to hunt her for sport. This became something different to what I initially thought it would be, it made for an unexpected story, the standout actor was Dylan Baker (Trick 'r Treat, Requiem for a Dream) who played Chelsea's teacher to excellent effect. My one real complaint with this one was that it felt like it ended too early, I get an open end, but I felt like more could have been done with the twist.
The second film was Gary & Vanessa, directed by Danny Isaacs. This gave me heavy vibes of the old TV show Tales of the Unexpected, something that had a similar idea to The Twilight Zone, but with a more grounded and realistic approach. The story here actually felt quite current, dealing as it does with the cost of living. Gary (Brett Edwards - The Forever Purge) and Vanessa (Agnes Bruckner - Vacancy 2: The First Cut) are a loving couple who are expecting the birth of their first child. Wanting his child to have the best possible chance in life, Gary has came up with a plan to commit suicide but make it look like an accident, so that Vanessa will be able to get his life insurance, something that she has been clued in on. Things however take a dark and unexpected turn. There was something slightly ironic with how the events here played out. I liked how the early twist gets superseded by later ones. There was one lingering graphic shot that maybe was dwelled on too long, sometimes less is more, but other than that this was a strong entry.
Next up was Ted & Mary, directed by Tom Colley, and starring the legendary Tony Todd (The Crow, Candyman). It was great to see this actor here, as I had no idea he was going to be in the movie. It was the most sentimental of the shorts here, and tells a moving story. An elderly couple, Ted (Todd) and Mary (Robin Bartlett -Shutter Island, American Horror Story TV series) have a film crew round who are making a documentary about assisted suicide. Mary is terminally ill, and to save her from the pain she is in, the couple have taken the decision to end her life early. To say any more would ruin the chance for surprise, there was a neat transition from a heartfelt first half (with some great acting from the two actors playing the titular roles), to the horror of where this ends up. My biggest complaint is that this is essentially the exact same twist that Gary & Vanessa had, sure the story is totally different, but it ends up in the same place.
Finally is Warren, and thankfully avoided my fears that this too would follow the same format that others did here. This one was directed by the writer, Jon Dabach and opens with the titular Warren (Samm Levine - Inglourious Basterds) being seemingly killed in a hit and run accident. The man is surprised to find his fatal wounds somehow heal, and after a series of experiments he discovers he is unable to die. With the knowledge of his new found immortality, he sets out to find the person responsible for the hit and run and get his revenge. I enjoyed this one, had some fun moments to it, and a deliciously dark ending, it was a good way to close out the anthology.
As always, I enjoy a good anthology and here I enjoyed each of the different short films. While the second and third did follow a very similar format, they were still set apart by the acting skills of the main cast as well as the different vibe. Outside of that little issue, and the abrupt finish to the first short, this was a solid film, one that I enjoyed sitting through. Immortal is due for release on February 20th from High Fliers Films.
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