Published in: Indie Film Reviews

Indie Film Review “Nation’s Fire”

Author OneFilmFan

Published on: January 24, 2020

WATCH THE TRAILER HERE

First, the Recap:

A crusade for retribution. An all too common reaction when being so drastically wronged by another that all one’s focus can remain on is seeing the source of the pain suffer and face the cost of their choices. Yet, could it also be said that true satisfaction when seeking then attaining this is questionable, for will the void caused by our loss be fully erased or still leave us hollow? Gloria Nation (Krista Grotte Saxon) just wishes to live a life of success and peace through her multiple means of employment, the company of friends within the biker community she treasures, finding freedom from her troubled ex-husband Vito (Chuck Liddell), and enjoying the time with her kind-hearted son Thomas (Wyatt Walter). However, when circumstances involving local criminal elements lead by the ruthless Josip (Gil Bellows) cause a devastating interruption to her path, Gloria reaches out to her former biker friends Rita (Kristen Renton), Lexi (Eva Ceja), and J-Girl (Kelly Lynn Reiter) to exact their own form of justice.

Next, my Mind:

This critic continues to be amazed when realizing that the wonder and success that is independent cinema manifests not through mega-budgets, overblown egos, and CGI-only visuals blasting us as film viewers ’til being so overtly tired of the unoriginality and lack of quality that we simply tune out, but rather sheer grit, perseverance, belief, love for the art of filmmaking, narrative, character development, and sincere commitment in heart to deliver the best possible results to illustrate this resolve, all while providing some solid entertainment to boot. That’s ultimately what gets delivered here through this revenge thriller from writer/director/producer Thomas J. Churchill that carries itself with a tone, pacing, and manner that unapologetically stands firm for what it is and holds nothing back in presenting the story of one woman’s quest for retaliation after a brutal act of violence rocks her world to the core.

Very much reminding this critic of efforts like William Wayne’s “Lost Angelas” or Usher Morgan’s “Pickings“, it’s a highly straight-forward, uncomplicated execution here, providing a visually smooth experience while maintaining an atmosphere that focuses on the theme of familial relationships past and present, how they affect who we’ve become, and the ways we then pass it along to our own families while additionally exploring the concepts of loyalty, healing of broken friendships, trying to separate ourselves from negative influences, helping others, desire for justice in the face of loss, and good old fashioned good vs. evil. Initially, the pacing of the story was a tad slow for me, as while it was relatively clear the overall, underlying path events were flowing towards, the journey to get to the truly pivotal point of transition and action was a bit disjointed at times, perhaps in trying to fill in the backstory of several groups of characters before they all converge to create the film’s quite over-the-top, often outright gory, violence-laden finale to put a bluntly definitive though necessary exclamation point on the proceedings. The actual final sequence in the effort is touching and visually impressive to cap things off.

Saxon sells us from the start in her role as Gloria Nation, a tough-as-nails yet level-headed, doting single mother who works very hard to provide for her much-beloved son while trying to raise him up more in the image of her biker father than her maligned, alcoholic mother whom she barely manages to tolerate. Things seem to be on the upswing when a sudden and shocking turn of events shatters her world and sends her into a tailspin of vengeance-seeking chaos, from piecing together who is responsible to putting together a group of people to take care of business. It’s borderline overacted during certain moments when trying to convey the level of emotional turmoil Gloria expresses during specific times, but Saxon nails the performance with conviction and steadfast bravado that makes it utterly impossible to not root for her character. It’s all heart and effort, and that is what counts to me when ultimately judging an actor’s offering in a film.

Bellows has quite the varied resumé under his belt, and here he gets to go all-out, ALMOST campy, evil as local criminal Josip, a man with no scruples and an ice-cold, calm, calculating menace in his demeanor that suits his empire perfectly as he rules through sheer force of arms and total fear while trying to be a father to his “wants in ‘the life'” daughter. The ultimate cause behind Gloria’s quest for reckoning, Josip’s choices and actions may or may not spell his own doom. Bellows is simply entertainment personified in the role, as you can tell he had a blast playing this character. Renton gets to have her fun time in the spotlight specifically in portraying Gloria’s former friend and fellow biker Rita, a no-nonsense chick with an attitude the size of Texas to accompany her no-holds-barred approach to life. Called upon by Gloria to become one of her angels of justice when the time comes, Rita’s prickly notions towards someone she considers a traitor to the club comes out, and Renton is all snarky sass and pent up fire let loose in this performance.

Talk about a WEALTH of beautifully delivered supporting roles in a film, this is one whopper of a list, ALL are very much individuals whose characters actually do have purposeful parts to play in the story, including veteran Bruce Dern as Gloria’s biker-club father whose life lessons and approach she very much desires to model, Laurene Landon as Gloria’s trailer-living lush of a mother Myra who might have a heart of gold underneath, former UFC-er Liddell as Gloria’s deadbeat, imprisoned ex Vito whose luck most likely won’t change for the better, Walter as Gloria’s son Thomas whose good-hearted, do-the-right-thing ways reflect his mother’s success in raising him but could also get him into unexpected trouble, Ceja as the biker chick Lexi who supports and defends Gloria’s cause to Rita, Reiter as J-Girl, a “cute on the surface” club member with a violent streak when push comes to shove, Cleo Fraser as Georgia, a young girl Thomas has a connection with and who becomes a key player as events unfold, David Castro as biker President Alfonso who causes his fair share of trouble, and  CeCe Kelly as Josip’s daughter Corrina who likewise ends up a major catalyst in how things turn south.

Additional turns are offered from Lou Ferrigno Jr., Tom Proctor, Paul Sloan, Kyle Lowder, Raven Lexy, Ken Sagoes, Karlee Perez, Rafiq Batcha, Vida Ghaffari, Gino Cafarelli, and Frank Drank among a host of others. In total, with its “Sons of Anarchy”-infused leanings and total commitment to just go full force in every facet of its staging and style that it can, “Nation’s Fire” is independent film to its core, and despite anything many mainstream or uninitiated filmgoers might target as cheap, low-budget, and uninspired about it, take a look and realize how much pure purpose, aspiration, ambition, goals, dreams, and dedication goes into even making a film and you suddenly come to the acknowledgement that what is presented here isn’t only fun and made to entertain, but represents the unadulterated passion of everyone involved, all of whom chose to pursue the art of filmmaking that goes so far beyond mainstream and back to the total enjoyment of simply relishing the beauty and pleasure that creating cinema should be and just IS.

As always, this is all for your consideration and comment. Until next time, thank you for reading!