When director Todd Sheets set about fulfilling his dream passion project of filming a practical effects werewolf movie (that was reminiscent of the classic movies of yesteryear such as The Howling or An American Werewolf in London) via an Indiegogo crowd funding, he hardly expected it to gain the massive traction that it finally generated.
The interest and backing from like-minded individuals keen to see a film produced similar to the ones they grew up loving with an old school mentality approach even gained interest from Indiegogo, citing the campaign as a benchmark in crowd sourcing.
The movie is ultimately a B-movie horror, but that term isn’t necessarily something to look down upon, as Bonehill Road is elevated by Sheets’ choice as both writer and director.
The creature effects are impressive and trigger the perfect amount of nostalgia along the way, but it’s the heart of the story that is it’s strongest point and the journey that our two leads, Emily and her daughter Eden are forced to go through in their fight for survival.
They flee from an abusive husband/father only to jump out with the pan and into the fire when they encounter a murderous psychopath who has a number of women tied up in his home. In this one moment, Bonehill Road turns from your typical werewolf flick to a story about female empowerment. A genius stroke from Sheets as it makes the movie not only contemporary and relevant in todays climate, but also cuts to the pointy end of sexual oppression that is so often overlooked in the news and media. The women must bond together in their suffering and rise up against the constant wave of male dominance in order to survive. It’s a shame then that the Gramps character has to make an entrance to help initiate a rescue. It may have been cool to have a gender swap here to and have Granny coming in to aid, and leverage off the classic wolf story, Little Red Riding Hood a touch. Then again, that road has already been travelled to a degree with Neil Jordan’s A Company of Wolves, so who am I to judge?

When the werewolves do come and they do as a pack, as our victims are hold up inside the house, they attack from every where, heightening that feeling of societies judgement and vitriol towards victims of sexual and domestic violence comes crashing through the walls with no direction or safety on the apparent horizon.

Throw in the casting of a name in the horror circuit with Linnea Quigley (Return of the Living Dead) as one of the fellow kidnapped victims and Sheets provides some further leverage in bringing in a wider fan base to Bonehill Road, proving that not only is he one of the most likeable directors in the business but also one of the smartest.

The Diagnosis:

Todd Sheets brings a bout of old school werewolf horror to the B movie scene packed with practical effects, and offers a strong heart that beats with purpose offering a fresh take on a tried and tested genre.

• Saul Muerte