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STUDIO: Chemical Burn Entertainment
MSRP: $19.95
RATED: Not Rated
RUNNING TIME: 90 minutes
SPECIAL FEATURES:
• Audio commentary with writer/director Charles Peterson
• Still gallery
The Pitch
Two devastatingly inept detectives track a killer.
The Humans
Written and directed by Charles Peterson, starring Patrick Adam, Lenny Rathaber, and Amy Searcy.
The Nutshell
A psychopath is butchering people for no apparent rhyme or reason. Detectives Garret and Davidson are on the case, unfortunately. These two miserable excuses for homicide detectives are too busy being cliches to get any work done. This low-budget DTV thriller features no compelling characters or story, just silly graphic violence and painful dialogue. I did like the twist though.
The Lowdown
The silliest serial killer ever!
I have no idea what the title of The 11th Aggression is supposed to mean. According to the film’s website, it has something to do with crossing the “normal aggression threshold” and reaching the “unthinkable” 11th aggression. I Googled 9th and 10th aggression but nothing came up.
The 11th Aggression is the story of two devastatingly inept detectives who are hunting down a serial killer. Detective Garret (Lanny Rethaber) is the seasoned by-the-book cop who’s doing his best to work alongside the young and brash Detective Davidson (Patrick Adam). Both are too busy being cliches to get any work done. Garret is consumed by the case and it’s ruining his marriage. By “consumed” I mean he sits up in bed, staring at photos of crime scenes just like every fictional detective you’ve ever seen. He’s a big dick though. When he comes home in the middle of the night he’s all pissed because his wife doesn’t have dinner ready. Then he storms off to a hotel where at least he can “get a hot meal.”
Davidson is a cliche of the contemporary “hard-boiled” detective. He flies off the handle at the drop of a dime and screams at his superiors for not letting him do things “his way.” When he’s incapable of finding evidence to support one of his theories about a suspect, his solution is to attack that person on the street and bark in their face “I know you did it!” That’s how Davidson gets shit done! He’s also a womanizer and him and Garret have zero chemistry or collaborative skills, so of course the chief insists on them working together to find who’s behind a series of brutal murders.
Detective Cliche can’t work like this!
The killer they’re after is named Jeffery (Steve Furedy). Back in the day he was part of an elite group of infiltrator/assassin/torturers that were allowed by the U.S. military to torture and pillage the enemy. Like most tragic veteran stories, Jeffery was cut loose without any support system. So now he goes around killing people who show him “no respect.” When we first meet him he’s hanging a girl upside between two trees – legs spread. He cuts a hole in the crotch of her jeans and funnels drain cleaner into her vagina. This is truly a horrific way to go, but the scene is made hilarious by Jeffery’s farcical dialogue: “This is only the beginning!” “This is what happens when you cheat, when you disrespect someone’s trust!” How can I ever fuck you again after he’s had his filthy dick in you!” Then he laughs a whole bunch. He looks like Willie Nelson and Jerry Garcia and Ben and Jerry.
Garret and Davidson have a hard time tracking Jeffery down simply because they’re horrible detectives. The only lead they follow up on is an ex-Army buddy of Jeffrey who tells them about his sadistic tendencies. Besides that lead, they never come close to catching him. Jeffery is only caught because he goes after Davidson’s bartender girlfriend. She wouldn’t serve him a drink so he decides to stalk and kill her. He’s got a mean limp, so he does most of his stalking from his pick-up truck.
“What’s the point of this movie?! ANSWER ME!!!”
A lot of the time it feels like you’re watching two different movies – one about two bumbling detectives and one about a homicidal veteran. Neither of them are good films. The graphic violence is supposed to be edgy and disturbing, but when it’s Willie Nelson speaking in absurd dialogue who’s perpetrating the murders, it’s just silly. And not at one point was I rooting for the detectives. They’re both assholes who do basically nothing to solve the case – the killer simply falls into their laps.
The script is very dumb, with heavy-doses of miserable dialogue and in-your-face exposition. I will say this though, I didn’t see the twist coming until about a minute before the reveal. Even if he can’t write competent detective characters, writer/director Charles Peterson pulls the end off nicely. Since it doesn’t really change the meat of the story, just the bookends, it’s not a total “oh shit” moment, more like a softer “oh, that’s cool” kinda thing.
The 11th Aggression never crosses the “normal aggression threshold” the title alleges. It barely manages to cross the 4th, whatever all of this means. Say, maybe it has something to do with the personality test they talk about in The Aggression Scale? Now that was an exciting movie. Watch that instead of The 11th Aggression.
The Package
Some guys get no respect.
Audio commentary with writer/director Charles Peterson. He talks about the strategic placement of the film’s “most controversial” scene (the drain cleaner one) and how it’s “supposed to be a true story” that an ex-bounty hunter told him. “Supposed” to be. He also covers the commentary standards, such as shooting, editing, and casting.
Photo slideshow including behind the scenes stills.
Rating: Out of a Possible 5 Stars
