Switch Killer (2005)

   
Directed by: Mack Hail

Written by: Mack Hail & Jim Mills

Starring:

Cara Jo Basso .... Jamie Garnes
Eric Bishop .... Bobby
Monique Chachere .... Brooke
Jennifer Autry .... Sylvia 'Bunny' Dane

Release Date: Direct-to-DVD: January 25, 2005

 

 

Rating:

 

An abused woman Jamie Garnes (Cara Jo Basser) leaves Los Angeles to get away from her brutal boyfriend Bobby (Eric Bishop) and heads to Las Vegas and thinks that she was closeted so she falls in love with a stripper as a lesbian bar Brooke (Monique Chachere) and gets a career as a stripper herself.
Bobby seems to still be fixated with Jamie and has a sex operation and heads to Las Vegas and kills her friends or anyone associating with her during a bunch of New Years Eve parties until that they are reunited again.

 

There's an impressive beginning with an abused woman named Jamie Garnes trying to pack from her abusive boyfriend Bobby with an answering machine turning on with this creep acting freaky which is impressive to a beginning of a slasher flick which will make anyone cringe who has experiences this type of experience before.
There's a good shot zooming across with strippers dancing as well as many other good camera takes on this.
Of course there's the first kill with Bobby after having a sex change which seems quite impressive at a railroad yard but then a train runs over this vicitm as you can tell this effect was very computerised but don't forget that this was an independent film so not many people can afford to have a closed set and hire someone driving a train.
There's nice impressions with Bobby stalking Jamie at her new home as well as at a strip club while he/now a she kills other stripper to get to her which has a nice traiditional slasher feel to all of this.
A nice but cheesy moment with a woman acting lustful in a room with good blocking moments on her as well as a good dark shot with a red light shining on Bobby talking low and freaky to her. Then some nice moments with her sitting back on his lap and taking off her top talking kinky to him and a nice side shot on him holding up a knife and plunging into her.
However alot of the story sinks with some pointless moments at new years dance clubs which seems a bit overly long and not getting to alot of a point on this while the murders keep happening but it does seem to pick up later on with surprise attacks with Bobby hiding and then killing her next victim as well as a moment where she is about to make out with a guy only to kill him too.
A good camera shot looking into a window with Jamie and then an indoor shot on her with Bobby staring at her.
There's a nice circling shot on Brooke lying in a bath with her answering the phone as well as good setting discussions with her and Jamie acting nervous about a situation as well as Brooke herself in the end acting unimpressed and hanging up which seemed pretty natural. There's a nice shot looking up on a woman bending down in a bathtub making out with Brooke which looked lustful with all the close up shots with this.
A cheesy discussion between Jamie and
a nerd in a bar which looked corny on how this moment was done.
There's some good intense flashback sequences with abusive moments which works incredibly well and making this moment convincing for the storyline showing what's happening afterwards.
There is good moments on Jamie confused about her sexuality too and finally denying that she's a lesbian and later on finds out the sex change that Bobby had which showed alot of creepy elements to the plot giving the film a perfect horror twist to this.
There's a good moment with a supporting character Casey Lewis slowly poking her finger at another supporting character Justin Riley and speaking smoothly towards him which almost seemed pretty deadly.
There's a nice camera shot zooming up on both of them and getting it on in a hottub which looked quite lustful too on the two of them.
A good shot on Casey walking up a staircase petting a cat with nice shots on the cat walking away and her following it. Plus a good shot on Bobby picking up a cork screw rising in the air as well as her facing Casey and plunging her in the breast with a good close up shot.
There's a nice shot on Justin lying in bed but his words acting kinky was cheesy but then a good approach on Bobby entering the room speaking to him as well as getting on top of him and pushing his head down which looked impressive that he was going to do something to him.
There's a good moment with Bobby entering a room and talking to Jamie with her trying to recognise him which shows greats shots on each of them as well as him removing his clothes to reveal on what he did to himself. There's a good moment on the flashback scene with him getting demanding towards her and slamming her head against a steering wheel in their car which looked very brutal and disturbing.
A good moment on him wandering through a crowd of people with a band performing as well as good tense shots on him stabbing some people and the rest fleeing which looked a bit corny.
There's a great shot on her running away from him as well as good shots on her behind a wall with a sharp kitchen knife stabbing through near her face with a great scared expression. There's also nice close up shots on him trying to charge at her.
There's a good menacing shot on her as well by bringing out a chainsaw along with good camera shots looking up on him with blood splurting in his face.
Many of these moments seems to borrow alot from Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Halloween. Plus this film seemed to also borrow elements on The Crying Game.
Bottom line is this is a fun looking indepdent horror film but it lacks in some spots and what's a bit disappointing is we all know who the killer is as in most slasher films it's usually a secret till close to the end of the story but that's not a big deal. Check it out for the fun of it but it's not the most original horror film by any means which shows alot of skin too.

Cara Jo Basser (Jamie Garnes) seems to do with with her troubled attitude trying to carry on with her life showing a nice natured attitude at the same time. She also shows a good mellow tpye of behavior in many scene's of the film. She also has the nice sharp looks and descent behavior too which works well adding a plus to her work in the film. A great scared expression when someone tries to stab her.
Eric Bishop
(Bobby) portrayed a perfect transsexual serial killer using his deep feminen voice and evil expressionless face when he is about to kill his victim. He draws alot of great intensity with his role and shows other characterisitcs before he had a sex operation as if he was a totally different person alltogether. A great reaction on him by challenging someone to a fight which was performed nicely in a good lesbian style fashion. I could see him getting other work in independent horror flicks playing other kinds of psychotic killers.
Monique Chachere
(Brooke) portrayed a perfect lesbian in the film showing a good charming and lustful attitude as well as having a good butch behavior too. She really knew on how to come across very aggressively with her obnoxious attitude when she doesn't like something and portraying some good characterisitcs with her role bringing out a ton of energy to her performance.
There's a supporting role by Jennifer Autry (Sylvia 'Bunny' Dane) who seems to be a little too melodramatic as a bisexual stripper in the flick buit does okay by talking smoothly with her lustful attitude. She wasn't much of a character actress though.

Many topless scene's with strippers dancing in a strip bar in many different moments of the story
There's a lesbian dance scene in a bar caressing one another
A stripper takes off her top while sitting on the killer in a private booth
One of them is topless in a hottub too along with her vagina exposed and walking up some stairs while trying to pet a cat walking away
A transexual exposes his body from top to bottom even if it looks a bit dark

A woman's stomach is stabbed as well as blood pouring out of her mouth.
A knife is stabbed in the back along with a slit throat
There's some other bloody stabbings with a kitchen knife
A transsexual is sawed by a chainsaw with blood splurintg out

There's nice clicking sounds as was as windy and hissing moments with the scene's when the killer is about to kill her victims. There's also the high sounding keyboard piano sounds too for a typical sound on a slasher film. Not too much involving interesting music for the film composed by Thorn Arwood.