BLOOD FOR THE MUSE

Produced by Daniel D. Burr, Dave Chapa, and Terry M. West
Edited and Directed by Terry M. West
Written by Terry M. West and Josh Robinson

Josh - Josh Robinson
Hooker -Tammy Parks
Sara, Claire, Melpomene - Tina Krause

Obsession. That's what Terry M. West's new movie BLOOD FOR THE MUSE is about, obsession. The kind of obsession that drives someone to the brink of insanity and makes them forget how they got there. You know, the kind of obsession that only a woman can cause.

Josh is about as close to the bottom of the barrel one can get. He has no direction, no focus, and no ambition. He plays music, but doesn't have the drive to join a band. During the day he's a video store jockey, at night he picks up call girls and mutilates them.

This isn't a slasher film, but it is, without a doubt, a horror film. West goes to great lengths to steer clear of the cliches that bog down many of the modern horror films cranked out in recent years by the Hollywood studios. As a storyteller, he's not concerned with the act of murder itself, but what drives men to the point where they commit the murder.

The object of Josh's obsession is an ancient, pagan muse, Melpomene. At night she sings to him. He can hear her siren song in the deepest reaches of his brain. She sings out for a sacrifice. She needs the blood or she won't manifest herself in the flesh. And that's all Josh wants, to cast his eyes on his beloved muse, in the flesh.

The film is told entirely from Josh's perspective. We the see the monotony of his day to day drudgery, hear his psychotic ramblings on the loss of his Christian faith, and ultimately get a birds eye view into the mind of someone completely detached from reality. With so many filmmakers working in the serial killer genre, it's refreshing to see someone like Terry West willing to break from the formula and give the audience something they don't see everyday.

Pulling triple duty, as the Melpomene among others roles, is Tina Krause. I've been hard on Tina's acting in the past, but here she gives best acting to date. Having started in soft-core, fetish films, it's surprising to see the depth she brings to Sara, a young woman who falls for Josh. Tina is able to bring a sense of vulnerability to the character without loosing any of her inner strength.

Adapted from his own comic book, West retains the comic's black and white visual style. It's an interesting choice that illustrates how seriously West took his project, and it pays off marvelously. Not only does it capture the grimy, darker side of New York, but it also adds a wonderful pulp feel similar to the horror films of the 1950's and 60's.

BLOOD FOR THE MUSE has a great deal going for it, the most important of which is quality filmmaking. The end result is like a Texas tornado. It draws you in, sweeps you along for a nightmarish ride, and spits you back out battered and bruised. You couldn't ask for more.

Blood for the Muse
Dark Muse Films

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