Written by Jesus Figueroa
@ThisFunktional
Breaking Glass Pictures murder mystery SCALPER fuses a slasher film with a murder mystery and tries to add several more elements to the mix in a chaotic story.
Everyone around psychic Clementine Carter, played by Susan Priver, is being brutally murdered by a masked killer dubbed 'The Scalper.' Is it dead psycho Andrew Lubitz back from the grave, a copycat killer or a horror beyond imagination? Clementine must use her second sight to stay one step ahead of the maniac's blade to solve the mystery.
Even as SCALPER is a complete story which provides all the information needed to follow along through solving the mystery of the scalper, there is so many aspects to the story that it gets confusing as to what kind of movie this is.
The murder mystery, who done it, crime drama starts off as the main focus with a serial killer, The Scalper, re-emerging.
Detective Hayden, played by Jake Busey, and Detective Lupino, played by Kate Patel, are trying to solve the mystery.
Detective Hayden, played by Jake Busey, and Detective Lupino, played by Kate Patel, are trying to solve the mystery.
Busey is able to command a scene as Detective Hayden. The strong portrayal makes for a grand authority figure.
Patel contrasts the calm Busey with a more sporadic and emotional role as Detective Lupino.
Patel contrasts the calm Busey with a more sporadic and emotional role as Detective Lupino.
The two detectives look for help from psychic Clementine, who was responsible for stopping the Scalper the first time.
Priver, who plays Clementine, has her own complex role to play. Clementine brings a supernatural element to the story as a psychic medium who has visions and communicates with the dead.
Priver, who plays Clementine, has her own complex role to play. Clementine brings a supernatural element to the story as a psychic medium who has visions and communicates with the dead.
The story is driven by the communication with the dead and the debilitating way Clementine communicates with the dead.
At times so much is going on that the focus is lost and the different elements can cause confusion.
The mystery of the murderer becomes secondary with the relationships of the characters becoming more prominent.
The supernatural element becomes even more of a detour to the main story as it becomes another element which makes the relationship between characters bizarre.
By the climax of the story, all the information has been presented and comes together a bit unexpectedly.
The reveal is slightly jarring, but brings the story together.
There is so much that goes on throughout the story that it becomes hard to tell which is the primary storyline to follow.
The murder mystery does not always have the focus and the gore and gruesome murders are too weird, but seem to be a point of focus for a short time.
SCALPER gets caught up in many of the elements of indie horror which cause frustration for horror fans. In an attempt to find unique elements to create a fascinating and entertaining movie, the story suffers as focus is lost making it difficult for viewers to connect with any aspect of the movie.
SCALPER
Available Now on VOD
