WATCH THE TRAILER HERE
First, the Recap:
The seeking of justice. We take a look at the world we inhabit and see as villainy, corruption, and others even more dire forms of evil are perpetrated upon the innocent by those who have no apparent conscious or moral center, inflicting pain without remorse, seemingly without consequence. Is it not undeniable that when this occurs, something inside of us desires to exact revenge? In an undisclosed city, there are indeed those who would take the law into their own hands in order to bring about their own concept of justice upon whom they have determined are human trash in need of elimination, and their names are “Hammer” Hank (Tony Gallo), Sister Mercy (Daina Oja), and Nightchild (Dee Marie).
With the vigilante trio out and about during daylight hours and into the evenings hunting the lowest of the low and taking them down, the other hours where ever-elusive sleep is found are also filled, but with visions and direct encounters with the most vile individual they’ve ever faced, The Wolf. A constant menace to them and their “mission”, the shadowy foe proves more than difficult to track, all the while making the vigilantes’ dreams turn to nightmares. Yet, the three soon realize if they don’t discover a way to finally kill this arch foe, they may forever be plagued by him and his minions. Now, The Wolf’s primary prey become even more resolute to stop him and get him out of their heads–or die trying.
Next, my Mind:
To day there have been more than a fair share of revenge-via-vigilante films out there would be an understatement, but leave it to the arena that is independent cinema to bring it all down to its bare bones, dark, gritty, raw, and totally obscure skeleton, which is exactly what happens with the 112-minute feature from Thunder Bay, Ontario-based writer/director Brendan Petersen. Delivering the “we’re coming to get you” mentality of a brooding, intense thriller like “The Purge” combined with the overt violence of a “Sin City” (okay, maybe not quite THAT consistently graphic, but still…), the project actually stays relatively calm for a large majority of its runtime, considering the themes being explored, with bursts of profanity-laced, anger-filled dialogue and abrupt moments of high order violence intermixed with long segments of the primary characters simply walking the streets, alleyways, and ruins looking for their targets. Initially, this gets a tad tedious and even quite confusing until, whether through the character’s statements or conjecture, you begin to piece together the trio’s agenda/M.O. and reasons to execute it, in the meantime trying to ascertain the precise nature of the main villain, The Wolf, and what his ultimate significance and influence is over them.
Once these general realizations are divulged, the almost scary thing is that while the methods displayed aren’t acceptable in real life, the greater underlying message about the legitimate need to see individuals like those being hunted who commit such atrocious crimes being brought to justice comes through and might actually make the viewer think about this necessity while witnessing the extreme measures “Hammer” & Co. take to rid society of “scum”, most assuredly dealing with their own inner demons while fighting to eliminate the one that mutually haunts all their dreams. Honestly, some could potentially try to argue this film might actually glorify and/or condone vigilante violence, but this critic doesn’t believe so at all. If anything, it boldly addresses the ugly side of human nature we all have had, even for a millisecond, experiences with, arising when we see injustice undealt with and wish we could do something about it directly. Visually the film is uncomplicated, stark and blunt in keeping with the film’s thematic bends, utilizing trippy “layered” imagery at times, plus surreal and blatantly brutal sequences, echoing the chaotic reality these three embittered, broken people reside in while carrying out their crusade. Again, it’s the pacing here, given the film’s close to two hour runtime, that won’t be for everyone, even to possible boredom, but bear with it if you want to truly see what intentionality the narrative is aiming for.
The three primary actors are really a cohesive unit to be assessed, even though each does have multiple moments on their own throughout the film. Gallo’s “Hammer” Hank is an unapologetically rough-mannered man who simply keeps to his own business, rarely interacting with anyone unless it’s his fellow vigilantes, a local drug dealer friend, or someone he’s stalking to exact justice on. Living meagerly while tracking and tabulating every criminal he’s got on his list to “off”, his rage reaches boiling point when it comes to the desire to find The Wolf and end him so as to finally have peace when sleeping. Oja’s Sister Mercy is truly the female equivalent of Hank, a woman created by harsh circumstances we may not have seen, yet know existed at some point to put her on the path of revenge she’s on against those who do violence towards children especially, fully relishing in their pain which she inflicts with a disturbing glee and satisfaction that’s admittedly well illustrated through Oja’s performance, a character that shows none of what you would normally associate her namesake with. Marie’s Nightchild combs the streets and back alleys with just as much determination and resolve her compatriots do, though there are brief times where it might seem apparent that while she’s also willing to dole out punishment, much of it might really be left more to “Hammer” and Sister Mercy while Nightchild gets to sit back, verbally stir the pot, and enjoy the “fun”. But, make no mistake, Nightchild will dish it out if needed, and she plays an integral part of seeking out and aiming to destroy The Wolf.
Suffice it to say, just being frank, this isn’t top notch acting found here, but more because the characters presented aren’t that overly deep or involved, which they really don’t need to be given the blunt instruments being portrayed. However, I still give credit where credit is due alone from the standpoint of the fact they’ve made a film, which as I often mention, is a feat within itself and not easy to pull off when working on shoestring budgets. Supporting appearances are made by Thomas Tezky, Brandy Kenna, Sean Hiebert, Matt Mombo, Ryan Cannon, Alex Silenus, Petersen himself, Martin King, Tyler Archeia Aurora, and Breanna Pirie. In total, “Paper Wasps” wasn’t a favorite film of mine from this year’s Berlin Liberi Film Festival (where the project screened December 16th), yet it does its level best to represent the indie film community’s ongoing intent to be unafraid to put any subject out there via any means they are able to with confidence and uncompromising, steadfast belief in their art and abilities, which is a highly commendable and purposeful manner to admire and support.
As always, this is all for your consideration and comment. Until next time, thank you for reading!
