Black Water Creek, is not a film about tracking down the existence of sasquatch, better known as Bigfoot, by a group of hunters, as is the norm for Reality Entertainment, for their vast films on crypto creatures and the paranormal nor it is about the Sasquatch Music Festival, this film reflects a drug traffic case in the area of the beast. The story involves Officers Rick (Nelson Irizarry (Senior Cut Day: The Movie [2011])) and Lisa Willis (Telana Jackson) on a cold case of piling bodies with missing faces and a new designer drug nickname nova, the locals in Black Water Creek claim the murders, come from a rampaging Bigfoot, the detectives present a skeptical look upon that concept. Rather they believe that a drug cartel might use the Sasquatch legend to their advantage and those bodies are unfortunate victims caught in the wrong place at the wrong time, but as the killings and the killer there’s the mystery to solve. Their captain does not share in the opinion of his officers and blames wild bears, preps for an open hunt command, but the does not deter the officers off the case. Rick reminds others, “Man is the only creature that hints and kills its own kind for pleasure”, hinting to justification for any actions one deems to protect their interests, more less a thrill of a kill pleasure.

The locals, including Mark Shell, claiming to have caught a Sasquatch only to have it escaped and without any physical evidence, but reinforces the belief in the legend. The officers remind others that the Bigfoot legends merely are tales of stories, with just an ounce of truth in them only to change over the years to keep it aware and useful to warn the strangers, authorities and youth.  Nevertheless, the believers of such legends attribute them to wildly connections to UFOs and even to paranormal explanations.

The film does the best to present a murder mystery, with some stylish presence and telling a multiple layered story, and not falling into the stereotypical redneck townsfolk pitfalls, which many of movies tend to plod themselves into without any care. However, the storyline does resemble in areas an episode of MacGyver, entitled “Ghost Ship” in it where criminals use the legend of Bigfoot to scare away passersby from their illegal endeavors, while also presenting a physical man in an ape suit to allude to the creature actual form. The similarities between this movie and that episode do tend to mirror themselves in many interesting manners. Just as the television show the absent of true gore and death scene outrages horror fans, a Syfy production contains more gruesome acts then this film presents.

Marshall Ever served as director, producer, cinematographer, editor and lastly writer, and while in the independent filmmakers grouping, one must wear many hats, one must also understand their limitations, and not let it affect the overall production. Herein, Marshall, had actor Mark Shell who also assisted in co-directing, and screenwriters Jon Firman and Chad Pettit co-wrote with Marshall, and the screenplay underwent four rewrites before heading filming. Yet, no overlooking the dialog confusion, involving strained situations for the characters (and the actors) to connect with each other and each scene.  This is all present in the outlook of the film, from a minuscule budget to the grittiness of the images on the screen, perhaps the technique of Blair Witch Project, and while the film was understandable accepted, it does achieve the same qualities with this film.

This film became Marshall’s last film he produced, and focused his attention on his novel writing, which centers on a series of books for Black Water Creek and other screenwriter projects. As for this film, the mystery overshadows the horror aspects, with good reason, the blood special effects lack, and no enjoyment for gore-hounds. An interest aspect lies within the credits with the production company listed as 5th Underground, which Is both a vodka enterprise and a film producing company, can make for interesting after work parties. The official release for this film lists the date July 22, 2014, and eerily on television Animal Planet has a show about the Killer Yeti and many movies have subject material ranging Mega Bigfoot to Yeti creatures on the prowl, so this film might find itself at home in the mix. As for viewable that is another story, one filled with some muddle points, large footprint holes, but yet a still mystery of the killer.

 

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2720980/

IMDb Rating: 3.0/10

Baron’s Rating: 3.0/10

This review was originally published on the now defunct Rogue Cinema website in June 2014.