Director: Derek Lee, Clif Prowse
Writer: Derek Lee, Clif Prowse (Screenplay)
Starring: Derek Lee, Clif Prowse, Michael Gill, Baya Rehaz, Benjamin Zeitoun
Plot: Two best friends see their trip of a lifetime take a dark turn when one of them is struck by a mysterious affliction. Now, in a foreign land, they race to uncover the source before it consumes him completely.
Tagline – Captured. On Film.
Runtime: 1 Hour 25 Minutes
There may be spoilers in the rest of the review
Story: Afflicted starts as Derek (Lee) and Clif (Prowse) are going on a year-long world tour, filming the whole adventure along the way, this is one of the last chance for the pair to get this tour to work with Derek having his own medical problem which could hit him at any time, stopping this dream.
After Derek meets a woman in France, he gets attacked and even after the friend continue their trip, he starts showing signs of an unknown illness, one that leaves him battle to stay on the trip in case it is side effects of his illness or something new, which is forcing him to change.
Thoughts on Afflicted
Characters – Derek is the daredevil of the pair, he will take a chance on anything high risk but he is also facing a bleak feature with a medical problem, which will see him unable to follow his dreams. On the trip he gets infected by something, an illness which will make him on his death bed one minute, then the next having superhero like abilities. Clif is the best friend who does have more fears about the trip, but is willing to record the trip, he has a massive amount of equipment to make each camera angle possible, he is left concerned and wanting to support his friend when it comes to staying on the journey. We only get glimpses of other people the pair meet on their journey.
Performances – Derek Lee and Clif Prowse work as the leads and directors of this film, which does bring their performances to life, as they look like the two friends on a journey of a life time gone wrong through the film, with Derek Lee needing to go through more of the intense side of the physical performance.
Story – The story here follows two best friends going on a tour of the world recording their journey along the way, what seems like it will be an enjoyable journey of a lifetime, turns into a nightmare when Derek gets afflicted with a disease which will make him want crave blood and have increased strength. This story does bring to life a new version of the classic vampire story, it is clear that he is showing the signs of being involved in the changes someone would go through if they were to become a vampire, while trying to keep moments of the sickness, looking like a illness, while the abilities are seen as amazing additions. The found footage used doesn’t always help the story though, because moments are too blurry, but other parts of it do make you feel like you are on the journey with them.
Action/Horror – The action side of the film comes from seeing the new abilities that Derek gets, the ones that will give him heighten abilities in jump, fighting and speed, with the horror side of the film being about the transformation that Derek goes through and what it will mean to make it through the experience.
Settings – The film is set in Europe and picks the biggest cities, which are not connected, but will show how the events could happen, with people in the shadows.
Special Effects – The effects are a lot better than any found footage film that you would have seen, showing the attacks and never holding back on the blood.
Scene of the Movie – The battle with Audrey.
That Moment That Annoyed Me – Too much shaky camerawork.
Final Thoughts – Afflicted is a smart vampire movie that will bring us a new look at the transformation process in the found footage world.
