[The Tattooist]
Plot:A tattoo artist must stop an evil spirit that is killing his clients.

Cast:Jason Behr, Mia Blake, David Fane, Robbie Magasiva, Caroline Cheong, Michael Hurst, Nathaniel Lees.

My Thoughts:Excellent supernatural horror film.

Review:I didn't expect much from "The Tattooist" to be honest. It was simply and briefly labeled as a film about an evil spirit working through tats to kill people. Not exactly a film which screams "watch me!". And considering some of the awful direct-to-dvd efforts that come out every other week with more mainstream premises, this film was pretty much set up to be a real headache enducer. Then there's the idea of Jason Behr as the star. I don't have a personal issue with the guy, but his performances of the past (as in post roswell) haven't exactly been gold. But then again, he has found himself in some really bad films, and wasn't given much to work with in either so I'm willing to give the guy the BOTD. As far as "The Tattooist" is concerned, I found myself pleasantly surprised with what the film had to offer.

The pic has Behr as a professional tattooist named Jake Sawyer, who decides to try and get acquainted with "tatau", the samoan tradition of tattoing. Sawyer however is a major capitalist, who journeys across the world searching out new designs, mostly ethnic ones. At the same time, exploiting them for his own benefit and profit. Not an original tattoist at all. He finds himself at a tattoo expo-gathering in New Zealand, where he decides to locate a samoan community within New Zealand to learn tatau. They don't take too well to his presence there, and are pretty much onto his game, as they let him know that many anglo-types have come through their neck of the woods before looking for tattoo material to rip off and take back with them to wherever they came from.

Jake however does manage to catch the attention of one of the samoan tattooers female cousins named Sina, which he sees as his way to get what he wants. But he makes the fatal mistake of taking of of their ink sticks to use for his new stolen designs. The stick turns out to be cursed by an angry spirit however, and once Jake accidentally cuts himself with it, everyone he tat's from then on out, and everyone he has tatted before the incident, begin to die grissly and mysterious deaths at the hands of a vengeful spirit. Now Jake has to find out how and why this is happening, and as his feelings for Sina get deeper, and she too becomes inflicted with the curse of death...he realizes he has only a short amount of time left to save not only her....but hismelf as well.

The thing to like about "The Tattooist", which was written by Matthew Grainger, and Jonathan King....and directed by Peter Burger, is that it combines a terrifying situation with a very intriguing story, a story deeply rooted within the rich tradition and history of tattooing, as well as samoan culture. This gives the film a very impressive and important element of depth which many horror films lack nowadays. After all of the one-dimensional supernatural horror pictures I've seen over the last few years, it's nice to see someone take things a step further, and add some meat to the story. The way the curse comes about is also very well written and thought out.

The sequence of events which lead to the deaths of those who Jake has inked, are alot more developed beyond the usual "kids screwing around with forces they don't understand"...kind of crap most supernatural horror films feed us. Behr plays the character of Jake Sawyer pretty well for the most part, and his character in itself is also very well devloped. We watch the character mature from someone who's simply out for some new designs to use for their own benefit, to someone who begins to appreciate the culture behind tattoing, and then eventually into someone who wants to ultimately stop the chain of horrific events he's set in motion through his own misdeeds.

There are alot of things to like about this picture beyond the usual genre steeples like blood, gore, and scares which at times make you forget about the horror elements of the film, even though they're constantly around at all times. The visual effects are nicely creepy, and the deaths, which don't reach a very high number in this anti high-body count film...are really intense and trippy as they unfold. "The Tattooist" probably won't scare the crap out of you, but it will make you think, it will make you a bit smarter about the history behind tattoos..for those who aren't already aware of it, and most importantly.....it is sure to entertain, with it's eerie storyline and diverse characters.

Although hardcore horror fans who can't fathom looking past graphic violence and seeing any other positives in a horror film probably won't like "The Tattooist", those who can will. The film doesn't move at a franetic pace, but it does build up speed as it goes along, leading to a very well done finale. In the end, "The Tattooist" takes a creepy idea, blends it with a nice hint of culture and new age style, and surrounds all of that with a well-developed storyline and a message which points towards the ills of taking too much from a particular culture without giving anything back...which can have terrible consequences.

Positives:Strong story, a very culture-rich script, good performances, unique yet gory demises.

Negatives:The revelation of what was behind the spirits anger was kind of a wash, and really could've just been left out of the film and replaced with something more feasible.

Overall:Good movie.





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