Young Blood: Evil Intentions, White Trash vs. The Vampires

....or one might term 2012's "Young Blood: Evil Intentions" as the anti-"Twilight" movie.  No cool, twinkling teenagers who have graced high schools for generations.  No centuries old central European royalty.  No sophisticated recluses dwelling in mansions.  Nope. In this film we have real people that actually look like our neighbors.  Directed, written, and produced by Mat and Myron Smith, today's blog entry gives us a vampire story resembling how "Twilight" might have looked if Troma made it.  Not a Troma film, but our buddy Lloyd Kaufman appears as a TV anchorman, in a very dramatic role.  Filmed in Martinsville, Virginia (NASCAR-land) YBEI is a horror story, a satire, social commentary, and a comedy....but it's default is all horror.

The movie begins at Anastasia's (Autumn Ward) birthday party.  Lots of friends and family converging on a roller skating rink to celebrate this day, but it is ruined by the girl's abusive stepfather to be, Dale (Myron Smith).  Once home, Anastasia's older sister, Anavey (Zoe Cox) takes her for a walk in the park.  However strange Anavey is, we all know someone like her.  The quasi-Goth Anavey, a vampire, then bites her reluctant sister on the neck, turning her into a bloodsucker. Anavey has a plan.  She desires to turn all the children in her town into these fiends and then kill all the adults.  Why such the hatred for adults?  It doesn't take Freud to figure this one out.  The girls' mother (Rebecca Kidd) is shacked up with an abusive Dale...who is appropriately clad in a wife-beater undershirt.  Dale beats their mom, and also Anavey.  After biting Anastasia, Anavey orders her to kill their grandmother (Brett R.M. Smith) in order for the transformation to be complete. This killing delivers much comedy...in a dark sort of way, of course.

As Dale gets more abusive, the girls kill more, all the while converting all the children in their school into vampires.  The local church begins to hold anti-vampire rallies.  Rallyers  will hold signs saying clever stuff like "Let Them Eat Stake."  Mat and Myron Smith throw in lots of biting commentary regarding what violent adults, and broken homes can turn our children into.  However, the commentary doesn't end there,  Every institution in working class suburbia receives attention from our film makers.  Teachers and parents meet horrible fates, and our children turn more evil.  However dark Anavey is, it is obvious Anastasia has good in her.  As Anastasia's doubts about vampire culture mount, Anavey begins growing suspicious of her little sister's loyalty.  Uh oh!  Is it too late for Anastasia?

Autumn Ward is absolutely FANTASTIC!  Though the adults are portrayed as out of touch and one dimensional, we the viewer must realize that is how the children see them.  Kaufman (pictured above) is his typical boisterous self, and presents newscasts as only he could.  However comedic and satirical this film is, be warned, when it ends there is no doubt we have just seen a horror film.  Kudos to Mat and Myron Smith for making a film that is perfect for this Halloween season.