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POLYMORPH
Edited, Produced and Directed by J.R. Bookwalter
Written by James L. Edwards
Director of Photography - Lance RandasTed - James L. Edwards
Donna - Ariauna Albright
Carlos- Tom Hoover
Tarper - Sasha GrahamPOLYMORPH is not just mindless, sci-fi action; it's FUN, mindless, sci-fi action.
Director J.R. Bookwalter has been one of the few micro-budget filmmakers to make the transition to Hollywood and POLYMORPH shows why. It's fast, slick, and makes the most of its limited budget.
The plot is standard stuff; a two mismatched groups of people fight off an alien life form as they are picked off one at a time. There's a group of college interns led by Ted and Donna and a group of drug dealers led by a man known only as Carlos.
The script could have used a polish or two before filming, some of the earlier scenes between would-be couple, Ted and Donna, are heavy handed and forced. They force too much exposition into scenes that don't call for it. Writer James L. Edwards seems miscast as the part of Ted. His dialogue calls for someone with more acting ability. As much as I liked his work in BLOODLETTING (again with Albright), he seems to have a limited range. Once the action starts there's no reason for acting, just reacting.
The interns are called out into the field by their professor to investigate a possible meteor crash. In reality was a small, alien craft with a creature resembling radioactive waste. Near the crash site, Tarper, a henchman for Carlos, is hiding out. It seems Carlos had a recent score of cocaine and needed a safe place stash it while the heat cools off. Having killed the professor, Tarper calls Carlos and his flunkies for help in clearing out the safehouse.
I won't bore you with the plot details, but one thing leads to another and Tarper's dead body is soon possessed by the organism as it sets about killing the kids and crime-lords. The problem is that once the host body is destroyed, the creature can morph into anyone it has come in contact with, dead or alive.
Things pick up once Carlos is on the scene. Bookwalter's direction and camera work move the story at a brisk pace. Relationships that were established in the beginning become of little importance as the events twist back upon themselves. Edwards is much better at writing action than interaction. Where as most films become dumber and more formulaic as they progress, POLYMORPH does the opposite as it builds to a welcomed unforeseen climax.
As far as micro-budget, action films go, this in one of the best I've seen. Once the action picks up, it's non-stop and explosive! Check it out!