A Blind Bargain (2025) Review: HP Lovecraft Film Festival Cinemax
Intensity: 🩸 On 🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸
Directed by Paul Bunnell
Treason. Basically, a good deal is a film on the worst type of betrayal you can imagine. Despair and greed convince a young Vietnam veteran in difficulty to submit his own mother to the programs of a crazy scientist. This retro groovy thriller from the 70s takes a cosmic turn by experimentation with life. It was the central film of the Film Festival by Lovecraft 2025.
A good deal is a story of a silent film by Lon Chaney Sr. in 1922, which is now considered a “lost film”. The only copy of this film was lost in the fire of the 1965 safe which also claimed several other films by Lon Chaney, including London after midnight. Everything was not lost, because the story of the crazy scientist was based on a novel by Barry Palin, “The Octave by Claudius, a good deal.”
The biggest challenge for this film is that you are forced to follow a protagonist which is difficult tor. Dominic is pathetic. The Vietnam War has left deep emotional scars which he pursues with heroin, which makes her vulnerable on several levels. This forces him to make extremely questionable decisions. Traitor decisions.
In the original film, the censors fell by the science of the game God. Frankenstein approached this and with a good blind deal, history focuses on a Faustian agreement for eternal youth. As is the case with most crazy sciences, it is a serious exceeding of power. The restoration of vitality reacts badly with fate. The elusive promise of young beauty has canceled more than a few evil geniuses.
Joy, you go on a cosmic trip to be a star again… ”
Logos (Jed Rowan)
The cast of a good blind deal
- Crispin Glover embodies Dr. Gruder, a crazy scientist who discovered a treatment of steroids with restoration properties of incredible young people. Naturally, there are unfortunate secondary consequences.
- Jake Horowitz plays Dominic Fontaine, a damaged young man who came from the Vietnam War. He returned with heroin dependence. This forces Jake to make very difficult and unhappy decisions.
- Lucy Loken plays Ellie Bannister, who works as a nurse for Dr. Gruder. Dom is instantly struck by Ellie when he goes to treatment for his dependence.
- Amy Wright plays Joy Fontaine, Dom’s mother, who was an actress of the era of the silent film. Dom lives with joy now when he tries to recover his life.
- Analisa Cochrane plays a younger version of Joy Fontaine, a beautiful and attractive woman in her peak.
- Jed Rowen plays logos, one of the subjects of Dr. Gruder, who acts as the app of Gruder. Entrances of joy the Lovelorn logos.
- Rob Mayes plays Vincent, the brutal drug dealer and Dom fanfaron.
A short synopsis of a blind case
Dominic Fontaine is a loser who cannot take a break. After returning home from the Vietnam War in 1970, his life is no safer. He met a deep debt with his heroin dealer, Vincent. It is a slim and frail guy who is too low to resist the intimidation of Vincent. Nor can he defend himself with his mother, Joy, who has housed him since his return. She is aware that Dom was not honest with her and makes her conditions so that he stays with her that he is looking for treatment. Joy gives Dom a brochure for a clinic that a social worker has given him: the Gruder Institute, where “recovery is within your reach”.
With the knowledge of Joy and Dom, however, the institute is not what it seems. Addition therapy is a front for certain shaded experiences of inconvenience involving steroids derived from insect larvae. Dom reluctantly checks in the clinic. The charming nurse Ellie checks it and Dom flirts with her shamelessly. She takes her blood and Dom returns home to inform Joy that he did what she asked. When Ellie recalls, Dom is informed that his blood … or more precisely, the blood of her mother … would be of great value for the institute. Dr. Gruder would pay generously for his blood.
Dom encourages his mother to believe that the clinic is also a spa, and that she should have fun while he receives treatment. The more involved experiences of Gruder take place in an old hotel frequented by Hollywood stars of yesteryear, which sells the cunning of the spa. The eccentric gruder welcomes “their only spa guest” in the installation. They quickly jostled her in a treatment room. There, to her surprise, they hold her back and give in. Torned between guilt and its vices, Dom accepts a contract to have a joy of convalescence at the Gruder Institute for a month. Money wins.
The next time Dom will see joy, things will have changed. Maybe for the best? Remember, however, Faustian offers never finish as you wish.
Assessment
A blind affair is probably darker in science fiction than horror, but as soon as you mention Lon Chaney, this film must be at least with adjacent horror. The decisions of the film are indeed horrible, and the truth of experiences (and their inevitable failures) also lends a morbid taking to the procedure. The betrayal is heartbreaking and well played by all.
Do not go in this film while waiting for a lot of blood and violence. It actually looks more like a hammer production costume drama from the 70s. Triggering warning, however: if drug consumption makes you uncomfortable, this film will wiggle you. Paul Bunnell is a long -standing partner of Don Coscarelli (Phantasm, Bubba Ho-TepJohn dies at the end). There are strong stylistic similarities between these directors, and if you like the absurd lightness of these films, I am sure you will appreciate it too.
The humor is sneaky, and the performances are very stylized, in particular those of the inimitable Crispin Glover. Glover is perfectly thrown like Gruder, because he is one of the pre -eminent actors of bizarre characters of the time. Horowitz (The vast night) delivered another exceptional and original performance, more solidifying his promise as an increase in young character increasing. Rob Mayes steals each scene in which he is. It is a muscular presence and a fun antagonist. I would not be surprised if the young actresses Loken and Cochrane soon obtain bigger roles. Hollywood likes beautiful women who can make original roles. More horror films for these two!
Finally, Amy Wright is a veteran actress (The deer hunter, break, the horror of Amityville), and it always has a significant presence. In a casting full of actors who laughed it, the subtle facial game of Wright was a welcome counterpoint. I was happy to see her in this film.
Vibrations
The film bursts in color and has the vibrations to match. A good deal Book characters with flamboyant personalities who have deeply anchored faults. A good comp to A good deal it would be The love witch or even The abominable Dr.phibes. This film is very independent. Very retro. And very funky. Indeed, phibe vibrations!
Brands high for costume and accessories work. Paul Bunnell informed me that in the context of extras casting calls, he asked for cars at the period and the casting responded. The aspect shooting on the film also lends authenticity to production. I love costumes. Yes, they push the trends of the time, but it is a stylized piece, and it works wonderfully.
Closing reflections:
A good deal has the potential to be a classic cult if the good audience receives it. The film strikes above its weight category with its casting. Crispin Glover is not a simple cameo; He is a villain with the extraordinary scene. Jake Horowitz, Rob Mayes and Lucy Loken are stars in the making, and this film will significantly improve their wallets. The intrigue is sneaky, with humor a subtle undercover, and it never relies on cheap gags. Yes, it’s Campy, but if you can interpret the camp graciously, this film does it. The aging horror is a trustee with persistent leaves, and this film continues the young youth fountain with a syringe.
This film is planned for a limited theatrical release in the main American markets. He had his world premiere in the Festo Fest, and Bunnell told me that they were working on a streaming agreement. The film is not assessed, but due to the quantity of drug addiction and wickedness, it would not be appropriate for young viewers. Older adolescents should be able to manage this material.
A good matter blind is nasty, and if it is in a theater near you, go check it out. It is a short independent film that deserves a cult B-Film buzz.
Review by Eric Li
An audio interview with the director Paul Bunnell:
I love the access I get by attending film festivals, in particular HPLFF. Paul Bunnell is an unforgettable personality who likes to tell stories. He is a first -rate showman and a really sweet and funny guy. Sometimes you get an interview, and it’s superficial and something of an obligation for the questioned person. Not with Paul. Bunnell was a real pleasure to speak, and I felt like I was drawing on an old Hollywood magic. As a director, he does not have the deepest filmography, but he is one of those personalities who feel like they have been in and around cinema and Hollywood all his adult life. He also has fantastic stories to tell about the manufacture of A good deal. Here is the backstage of the Hollywood Theater:
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And … as an additional bonus … A blind affair has a kick poster!
