Arriving on February 27th, 2026, from Waters Film LLC, Gunfighter Paradise is almost a single effort. In that, Director Jethro Waters (F11 and Be There 2018, Yene Fikir 2021) also wrote the script, handled cinematography, edited and colored the movie, composed the music with Bryan Black, produced the movie with Sara Ayele, and acted in the movie under a pseudonym. But curious viewers will have to watch the movie to find out for sure which role he plays.
The movie is a dark comedy about Stoner (Braz Cubas), a hunter returning home to North Carolina. All he has with him is a strange green case and, following the death of his mother (Jessica Hecht: Friends TV series, Whatever Works 2009), a host of strange visions and voices in his head, tearing him one way or the other. It is up to him to figure out his fate as his grip on reality slackens.
Interestingly, the film was completed with a budget of just under $30k. It helps that most of the movie’s cast and staff are friends of Waters’, who took part in the project as a favor, and the shooting was scheduled around their availability. They also provided the locations, all within NC, and Joel the Cable Guy is actually a cable guy called Joel (Joel Loftin). No word on whether the Civil War re-enactors (Michael Kraft, Rob Hinkle) did real re-enacting, though.
Waters and Co. also took this approach to filming, making it almost cinema verité: they shot the movie on location, mostly with natural lighting (there are a few instances of diegetic and non-diegetic artificial lighting). For a sub-$30k flick, the scenes look crisp and clear, with some strong framing and neat editing here and there. It shows how far technology has come since Peter Jackson filmed 1987’s Bad Taste on multiple film cameras for 4 years’ worth of weekends.
Though if viewers like a little low-budget jank, there are still a few noticeable joins here. They are just less shoestring horror and more arthouse convenience. Like Joel and the re-enactors’ little scene, looking like they were filmed separately and spliced together, or Stoner’s standout hallucinations, being a yellow sheet that leads into a sudden, blurry montage of burns, lewdness, and Christian imagery. A little something for the Kenneth Anger fans out there.
That, and the slow, eerie pacing, where quirky characters come and go, and minutes of peace are suddenly broken by shock imagery and stinging chords, and surreal dialogue is exchanged with curious delivery. Aside from Hecht, everyone else in the cast is either a first-timer or generally not trained in acting, yet their performances still work because they add to the movie’s atmosphere. They feel either haunted and edgy, like Stoner, or over their heads, like Joel.
At the movie’s heart is a message about the conflicting overlaps in Southern Christianity: love thy neighbor, but go after them if they dare to be different. Thou shalt not kill, but thou must be a killer. Follow the 10 Commandments and the 2nd Amendment. It delivers the message well, complete with ironic asides and payoffs, be it Stoner and Joel commenting on the ‘tactical men’, or the scenes with Stoner’s neighbor (Christopher Levoy Brower: Moon Europa 2009, We Won’t Bow Down 2012) and his son (Pate Leatherman).
They are not particularly vague messages either. Stoner’s hallucinations, with the burning, blood, birds, and occasional butt, require some cog-turning. But the movie does spell it out plain here and there, be it the likes of Joel and Stoner’s brother (Valient Himself: Tapawingo 2023) showing how far-gone Stoner is by being comparatively normal, or the neighbor and Maurice (Alex McWalters) showing what Stoner could become if he went further.
If anything, the movie might be stronger on the Horror front than on the Comedy. Its pointed barbs hit the mark, yet it is at its best when it shows how dangerous Maurice can be, thanks to nothing but good camerawork and sound editing. Likewise, the climax to the subplot involving the neighbor is worth its build-up. It would have to be, as its pacing does make its 93-minute runtime feel at least 30 minutes longer than it is.
As such, Gunfighter Paradise is not a movie to go into fully blind. Anyone who just looked at the title and put it on, expecting some blazing-gun, quickly paced action movie, is likely to be disappointed. But if they also love arthouse horror flicks with great visual storytelling, a moody atmosphere, and strong suspense-building, complete with a plot that will make them think, they will be pleasantly surprised. Which is why Cryptic Rock gives Gunfighter Paradise 4 out of 5 stars.
){kind=link}
No comment