Every so often, a little hope is restored.  Not often.  Too many soulless remakes and tired sequels to every be truly content with the state of horror today, so it's nice to be occasionally reminded of the fact that there are truly independent thinkers, writers, and filmmakers.  Better yet, the joy of the moment when a friend sends you that message that says, simply enough, "The Landlord.  Check it out."  I did, and I'm happy to say there's some real fun to be had with this indie horror-comedy.

All those words together - independent, horror, comedy.  It should send shivers down your spine, and not in a good way.  More in the Zombies, Zombies, Zombies way, where you begin to doubt whether the genre could possibly sustain another crap-tacular zombie flick made by people with more time than imagination. But I do not come to bury Zombies, Zombies, Zombies (I did that here), but to praise The Landlord. Written and directed by Emil Hyde (and if that's not a pseudonym, it should be), The Landlord is full of surprises.

Tyler (Derek Dziak) has inherited an apartment building from his folks, complete with tenants, maintenance problems, and flesh-eating demons who have a nasty habit of devouring his tenants before they can pay rent.  His police officer sister Amy (Michelle Courvais) is too wrapped up in an affair and the simmering tension with a local vampire gang to be much assistance with her brother's otherworldly problems.  When a new tenant moves into the building, fresh off the lam,  Tyler takes a shine to her, but not before his resident demons can get hold of her and stow her away with the intent to eat the unborn baby she was trying so desperately to abort.  

tension with a local vampire gang to be much assistance with her brother's otherworldly problems.  When a new tenant moves into the building, fresh off the lam,  Tyler takes a shine to her, but not before his resident demons can get hold of her and stow her away with the intent to eat the unborn baby she was trying so desperately to abort.  

There is a lot of detail in the writing, and Hyde revels in the foibles of his human characters as much as he delights in making one of Tyler's literal demons, Rabisu (Rom Barkhordar), obsessed with the mundaneness of the human world, such as a food dehydrator seen on television.  It could all be handled with an ear for the comedy, but this is all played relatively straight, with jokes, bad puns, and some not-so-hidden social commentary flying at breakneck pace.  

Sure, there are issues with the film, just as with any low-budget film helmed by a first-time feature director.  The acting doesn't live up to the script in many instances, the effects work is questionable and the visual narrative has no set tone, but rather a "throw-everything-at-the-wall-and-see-what-sticks" approach that harms as much as it helps.

tone, but rather a "throw-everything-at-the-wall-and-see-what-sticks" approach that harms as much as it helps.

And yet.  I had a great time watching this movie.  For every complaint, I was equally enthralled by the obvious attention to the script, the spirit of fun, the intelligence, and, yes, even the crappy effects.  Because this movie sets out to create a world, and it succeeds.  Moreover, the movie is just so energetic, so full of its own enthusiasm, that even the weaker moments come across as somehow charming.  I won't go so far as to say I loved this film, but I really liked it, and even admired it for exceeding the limitations so obvious in most low-budget cinema.  Hyde is to be commended, and, indeed, the film has won some awards in its festival appearances.  Hyde is a director to be encouraged, if only to see what he'll do next.  If it's anything half as fun, deranged, silly and eminently watchable as The Landlord, you can count me as a fan.