In the late 1970’s a community is wracked by fear and death in “Seed” the new horror film from director Uwe Boll. After brutally killing 666 people in 6 years, mass murderer Max Seed (William Sanderson) is captured by Detective Matt Bishop (Michael Pare’), after Seed brutally dispatches the entire group of officers sent to arrest him leaving Bishop the sole survivor.
On the day of his execution by the electric chair, Seed is given three intense jolts that leave him charred and bleeding from his eyes yet still alive. Unwilling to let the mass murder spend the rest of his days in an asylum, Warden Calgrove (Ralf Moeller), convinces the attending Physician Dr. Wickson (Andrew Jackson), and the executioner to join him and Detective Bishop in a cover up.
The witnesses at the execution are told that Seed is dead, and with the world believing the mass murderer is gone for good, the Warden and his conspirators bury Seed alive.
Things do not go as planned, as Bishop is troubled by his silence in the matter, and when Seed manages escape from his grave, he is tasked with stopping the killer who is now even more dangerous as he is fueled by an insatiable drive for revenge against those who left him for dead.
What follows is a dark and brutal tale of revenge, morality, and punishment in a dark and brutal tale that is easily the best work Uwe Boll has ever done.
The film is very violent and contains some brutal sequence of death, violence, and torture but in doing so is a study of the larger questions of justice, morality, and capital punishment. The film examines the question of society and the law becoming killer to punish killers, and how far can a person go in the pursuit of justice before they become the very object of that which they strive to punish and destroy.
The issue is left largely for the audience to decide as the film largely centers on the aftermath of the decision to bury Seed alive, a decision awash in moral ambiguity. On one hand, the need for Seed to be punished for his crimes against society is clear as he is a deadly individual who lacks any remorse or compassion. The script written by Boll eschews the larger back story of Seed and his motivations and instead focuses more on the circumstances and aftermath of Seed’s capture leaving his origin and motivations unknown.
Pare’ does solid work as Bishop as we see the duality and conflict in the man. After capturing Seed he tells his captive that he could kill him now if he wanted to and yet takes him in alive to answer for his crimes. Yet when faced with Seed staying alive, he allows actions to be taken that go against his values.
I found myself really enjoying the film as not only is it by far the strongest work Boll has ever done, but it raises the question if the Director has been wasting his time with video game inspired movies, when Horror and Drama may be much more his forte.
While some may want to dismiss the film as yet another violent psycho film, I would suggest you give the film a chance and watch it with an open mind, as it is a rare horror film that no only stays with you after the film ends, but challenges you to think.
3.5 stars out of 5.
