Hell's Ground (2007) 7/10

These days anybody with a little bit of money can make a movie. Through the democritization of film due to the digital revolution anybody can be a director. Because of this we're seeing an explosion of foreign cinema, shot in native tongues with native stories. Through the proliferation of dvds and the internet, more and more U.S. distributors are taking chances on these films and finally bringing unique non-American cinema to our shores. I Love to see this. Hell's Ground is one of these films.

Hell's Ground is a Pakistani film about a group of teenagers out late trying to get to a concert. Along the way they are met with Zombies, crazy shamans, and a burqa wearing spike ball mace wielding serial killer. Now, the plot isn't exactly non-American, but the eye in which through the film was made is.

Hell's Ground shows us a view of Pakistan that we rarely get to see. Mostly we see protests and bombings, war and strife on the news. Never do we get to see the teenage life there. We don't see it as the locals see it. That alone is worth the price of admission for me. The film's moral tale is that children shouldn't lie to their parents, as all the characters have to do in order to get out of their homes to attend the concert. This is also very culture specific. The characters in the film are all pretty stereotypical, the jock, the stoner, the popular girl etc but they all have another dimension. Instead of playing those roles to the hilt throughout the film, each character grows and changes, having learned from their mistakes and transgressions. This is also a welcome difference from standard American fare. Its so nice to have character development that makes sense, even in a silly horror movie with a simple plot. There's even some pretty good gore and makeup effects throughout the film. The film is written, acted, and directed very well, especially given the country it was made in. The standard of living in Pakistan is pretty low and its hard to make films outside of the Pakistani film industry. The film is shot in digital video but it looks great, with wonderful post production coloring and editing, making the film fast paced and pleasant to look at.

Hell's Ground is a great foreign flick with a typical script but executed in an atypical way. I look forward to the director's future works. Check it out.

Nudity- none

Gore- mild/medium

Overall - 7/10