[5] This was made
by the same folks who are responsible for the TV series Boon, and stars a lot of the same people. According to John Wolskell, the co-producer and co-writer of it, they "set out to make a film with
loads of blood and that was lots of fun". Right on both counts -
IBaVM is an outstanding entry in that difficult genre, the horror-comedy, and will be a well-deserved success if the reaction here was anything to go by - it was generally regarded as the hit of the
festival. The title says it all; a Satanist is trying to summon a
devil when proceedings are interrupted by a gang of Hell's Angels
who kill him. Thanks to the demonist bleeding into his motor-bike's
tank, it becomes possessed and at night, goes around seeking blood
and revenge against the Hell's Angels. This happens after it's sold
to a dispatch rider (Morrisey), who has to fend off the bike,
the Hell's Angels, his girl-friend (Noah), and the police
while trying to get a priest (Daniels) to turn it into an
exorcised bike [Ouch!].
The effects, from Bob Keen's Image Animation, are highly arterial, with the (severed) head count close to double figures - add in fingers, legs & a bisected nurse and we're in messier territory than ever reached by Hammer. And it's Hammer who are the closest in spirit here - although without any sexual overtones, the bike is a true 'classic' vampire, repelled by garlic & crucifixes and fearful of day-light; with nearly every surface capable of slicing, crushing or mutilating, it's one mother of a machine. If the film has a problem, it's that it tries to cram in too much - one or two chunks, such as a dream sequence involving a talking turd, are funny but add little to it. However, given the probably low budget (the makers were very coy about it, in case it prejudices negotiations with distributors) it's a lovely piece of work and hopefully will get a theatrical release, possibly with Blue Dolphin, the company who distributed Bad Taste.
