“Viewers seeking more than the typical gore-fest will find themselves pleasantly surprised.”

After burying his mother, Evan tries to drown his sorrows in drink, resulting in a nasty barroom brawl. Suddenly jobless, and with the police pounding on his door, he grabs his passport and gets the first flight out to Italy to finally take the backpacking journey he talked about with his father before his own untimely death. Tagging along with a couple of British party animals who are driving along the coast, a beautiful girl catches Evan’s attention. Louise is every man’s fantasy; she doesn’t date and is only interested in a quick, no strings attached sex. Scoring an evening dinner with her, things start to move faster than Evan expects and he begins to fall for Louise, but just when he finally understands her reluctance for a committed relationship and her dark secret is revealed, he finds himself in too deep to run away from her.

Viewers seeking more than the typical gore-fest will find themselves pleasantly surprised by this great blend of horror and romance. Co-directors Justin Benson and Aaron Moorehead (Resolution, V/H/S-Viral) take their time exploring the ins and outs of falling in love with a monster, alternating idyllic Italian scenery with tones of romantic drama, touches of comedy as well as brutal bloodshed, and some truly disturbing imagery. Although the horror aspects are often more understated and less frequent than some may hope, there is enough here to keep the viewer intrigued and each gore-filled scene has meaning and purpose within the story being told.

It is with the relationship between Evan and Louise that Spring is at its strongest though – Lou Taylor Pucci (Evil Dead) and the ravishing Nadia Hilker possessing a natural chemistry together on the screen as the relationship between the characters is examined at an almost microscopic level. Almost Lovecraftian at times in its tone, it is beautiful, grotesque, refreshing, utterly captivating, and packs a solid emotional punch all the way to the very last frame.

Despite slightly lagging in the middle, overall Spring manages to hit the high notes in all the right places to produce a blend of horror and romance that only comes around rarely, and dare we say it, is fresh and original. Be sure to add it to your list of must-see films and catch it as soon as you can.

Bob Pastorella

Director: Justin Benson, Aaron Moorhead.
Starring: Lou Taylor Pucci, Nadia Hilker.
Certificate: 15
Release date (UK): 17 April 2015

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