I remember over 20 years ago (back in 2001) when I first saw Richard Linklaters film ‘Waking Life’ I thought it was odd (not in a bad way) For those not familiar with that film, it was shot using rotoscoping.  It was filmed as an actual film, but then animation was placed over it to make it an animated film. To anyone who hadn’t seen this technique before it was a little jarring and wasn’t for everyone’s taste in film but its a unique and clever way to tell a story.  Its been a while since I have seen a film that gave me that same ‘wow this is new and also very strange- but in a good way’ sort of feeling but I have to say Abruptio has given me that feeling.

Not using the same rotoscoping technique Abruptio has been made using entirely lifelike puppets and voiced by big names such as James Marsters (Buffy The Vampire Slayer), Christopher McDonald (Hacks), Hana Mae Lee (Pitch Perfect), Jordan Peele (Get Out), the late Sid Haig (House Of 1000 Corpses) and Robert Englund (A Nightmare On Elm Street). 

In Abruptio we follow Les Hackel (James Marsters), a guy who is very much down on his luck and who wakes to find an explosive device has been stuck in his neck. In order to save his life Les must carry out crimes and also tries to work out who this crazy mastermind who planted the bomb in his neck.

Whilst I will say that the puppet style of Abruptio isn’t for me. Don’t take that as a negative. I often struggle with animation but yet I will say that the creation of Abruptio is so damn clever! and I am highly impressed with the work that’s gone into the film. I definitely would love to see a making of for Abruptio and the patience of the team behind the film would get it 5 stars for sure.  The film has already won a bunch of awards on its festival journey including  Best Horror Film, Best Director, Best Cast and Best Effects.  Directed and written by Evan Marlowe (Blood Rush, The Impact) Abruptio is one of those ‘pushing the envelope’ films, at least it is for me as I cannot recall ever seeing a film like this before and whenever a film tries something new then I always give it a round of applause for doing that, whether its a style I love or a style that isn’t for me (I always understand that not every film is made for me) So if you love cool looking stylish films that 100% fit into the ‘unique’ bracket, then I do highly recommend you look at Abruptio.

Speaking about the film, Evan Marlowe has said:
“The advantage of puppets is they never age. You can capture a vocal performance and then spend the next few years shooting the film at your leisure. You can also do things with a puppet that would be impossible, or at least very painful, using a live human!”

Other outlets had the following to say about Abruptio. Dread Central “Nothing in this movie comes close to being normal”, while Fanboy Planet said, “A fever dream, Abruptio weaves in stylistic touches from 1970s horror cinema and manga”, and Morbidly Beautiful has said, “Abruptio is astonishing – a film full of puppets that probes the depth of humanity.”