"Pigster" aka "Feast of Fear"

I added "Pigster" to my watch list because I feel like there aren't enough monster pig movies out there in the world.  I'm still right, but during my 20 in 2020, maybe I'll rectify that, at least with a short.  But for now, "Pigster" adds nothing to the "monster pig" sub genre, although he is a monster and he looks like a pig.  His "piggish" looks aside, he fits in more to the Demonic Monsters arena.  And that's cool too.

In fact, I feel like the movie's original title, "Feast of Fear" more accurately prepares you for what you're in for when you sit down to watch this one.  Fear and a "Wishmaster" like hook that nobody gets something for nothing, play the biggest roles in this movie, although there are monsters-a-plenty to be seen.

The Pigster's make-up, especially around the eyes, is amazing.  His character is a bit of a throwback to the heavy metal, guitar playing movie demons I grew up with in the 80s. I'm wondering if teens still find this sort of thing cool.  I'm hoping they do.  I found it a bit hokey, but the nostalgia was enough to carry me through.  And Pigster isn't the only demon monster in this movie.  The Dealer (Robert Davi) and The Messenger ( Clint Howard ) are your basic human looking demons who sit at opposite ends of the spectrum.  The Dealer recruits the sould to feed fear to Pigster's protagonist, The Beast.  He is well dressed, charming and calm.  Davi plays him perfectly, as expected.  On the other side of the demons interacting with our world sits The Messenger.  He wears rags and is seen as a homeless person with a quirky personality who speaks in riddles.  Unfortunately, Howard is relegated pretty much to a cameo here, but he turns in his usual professional and off-center performance.

A cast of lost souls living in the hellish dimension with Pigster give the f/x team a lot of room to exercise some creativity and they come through.  For monster make-up fans and lovers of masks, this movie has a couple of set pieces that really deliver.

The Beast and Rat Girl round out the underworld cast and they're spectacular, although the Beast is underused.  In true monster movie fashion we get suggestions of what he looks like for  most of the movie and after some of the other make-up we're treated to in full view, his final reveal is a bit of a let down.

Unexpectedly good CG effects are utilized throughout most of the movie.  Some of the keying stands out as greenscreen (or blue or whatever color they used), but it's usually within the "fantastic" realm of the demon dimension and so the unreal feeling works for it.  Again, a bit of a 80s/early 90s vibe is elicited by these moments and made them work for me.

Acting, directing and score are solid all around.  A few moments aren't high-budget quality, but nothing that couldn't be overlooked with the overall quality film carrying you through to the next scene of gore, violence or beastly battle.  

There is a character who enigmatically explains what's going on.   I suspect this was for two reasons:
1. The exposition was needed to explain the demon's weaknesses.
2. The movie needed padding and adding a storyteller who interrupts every so often from a single lair set was an economic way to do it.

The movie clocks in at just over an hour, but one of my favorite things about streaming films is that they don't need to hit unrealistic 90 or 120 minute marks in order to be made.  Some stories are best told at a brisk pace and this is one of them.

If you're in the mood for some demonic bacon, "Pigster" will give you an hour of entertainment you won't soon forget.

Warning: The Trailer gets pretty bloody and I wouldn't call it SFW unless you work at Troma or someplace like that.

                                     

Usually this is where I post one of my videos along a similar line.  I've got nothing like this in my toolbox.  So, here's the newest "Jack vs Lanterns" trailer.