Review: ‘NEKROTRONIC’ is an epic, colorful & action-packed riot -

Editor’s Note: there may be spoilers or spoiler-y tidbits in this review

Necromancy, a magical practice of communicating with the dead, has natural roots dating to the Greco-Roman world. It would later be closely associated with black magic and be condemned by the Church. As with many ancient beliefs and rituals, necromancy later wormed its way into popular literature, television and film – including the Harry Potter series, 1972’s Necromancy, Evil Dead (1981), The Serpent and the Rainbow (1988) and an abundance of other horror flicks. Sydney filmmakers and brothers Tristan and Kiah Roache-Turner (also the director) assemble a 90-minute popcorn-worthy feature that aggressively zig-zags through genres – from futuristic odyssey to uncomplicated action/adventure to demonic possession. The stylistic swerves are nearly as violent as Monica Bellucci’s Finnegan sucking souls for breakfast.

The frantic storyboarding is jarring on initial impact, but once a groove is set, the limits are boundless. NEKROTRONIC is a hyper-colorful, action-packed comic book tale that’s not going to change the world – and it doesn’t need to. It’s kaleidoscopic style, owed to cinematographer Tim Nagle (Outback), who plays with bright neons and flashing strobe-like effects, gives the world a considerable cinematic sparkle. Ben O’Toole (Hacksaw Ridge) plays Howard North, the everyman working in sewage removal, and his struggles to reconcile the death of his parents at an early age send a cascade of ripples into his entire story arc. The second-act plot twist, perhaps revealing that one of his parents is actually quite alive, may test the very fringes of his remaining emotional capabilities. He’s often detached and unfeeling, yet his trusty, goofy and phone-addicted side-kick named Rangi (Epine Savea) is able to elicit compassion and more than a few chuckles. The dialogue doesn’t always land, but their chemistry certainly does.

Bellucci’s portrayal of villainess Finnegan, who plots to destroy the entire world through an iPhone app – a clever development allowing demonic spirits to consume the digital space – is calculated, treacherously cold and irrefutably unredeemable. Every moment feels premeditated, but in the third act, you begin to feel deeply for O’Toole’s Howard North, who, as damaged as he might be, sheds his past to find a new future. While there are clear story beats and moments that imitate other major motion pictures (perhaps a melting pot of Tron, Predator and Matrix through a very obvious exorcism-style lens), Kiah always frames them with a wink and a nod. The viewer is in on the joke, for better or worse, and it’s our job to shrug and laugh.

Howard soon encounters a group of rebels, necromancers hellbent on tracking down Finnegan, and it becomes their moral obligation to take him under their wing. Unbeknownst to him, Howard possesses a deep and dark power that they must later bend into quite the secret weapon. Molly (played by Caroline Ford, known for her work on such TV series as Free Reign and Carnival Row), Torquel (Tess Haubrich, from Alien: Covenant, Bad Mothers and Pine Gap) and Luther (David Wenham, from The Lord of the Rings, The Letter for the King and Iron Fist) band together in punishing and bloody action sequences that’ll really get the carnage-loving juices flowing.

Hitting Shudder this week, NEKROTRONIC is enough of a compelling fantasy, flaws and all, that makes for enjoyable holiday viewing.