Tubi Reviews: Last Rites of the Dead (2006) and Hellfire (2015)

Every now and then folks will clue me in to fright flicks they are associated with, and ask yours cruelly to give them the ol’ revoltin’ review treatment!
One such case is this demonic duo, suggested to me by producer Frank Garfi… and if his name sounds familiar I reviewed another film he helped create, 2020’s Twisted Fiction (the review for which you can read right here)… so let’s dive into our first putrid picture, 2006’s zombie apocalypse with a twist, Last Rites of the Dead!
Ol’ Angela (Gina Ramsden) is having a right shit night, to wit: her explosively violent boyfriend goes completely fuckin’ apeshit and blows her away as she cowers in a bathtub.
Well, that was a dumb-ass move par excellence as this bit of murder biz happens smack dab as the dead are returning to life… and here comes that aforementioned twist, the dead really want back into a society that may not be too into that whole shamblin’ corpse thing… but these stiffs kinda have their shit together insanely enough, so here’s to ya!
Sprinkle the above surreal synopsis with some undead terrorists, faux commercials and news stories, and a zombie hunting militia and you have yourself a truly one of a kind… and pitch black… horror comedy!
Writer/director Mark Fratto offers us a glimpse into a world where zombies have more rattlin’ around in their noxious noggin than an insatiable lust for human flesh… but fret not horror hounds, they still want a gut to munch, it’s just not their “be-all end-all”… and the end result gets a ton of mileage out of it’s low budget thanks to some solid social commentary (long a mainstay in these types of arcane affairs thanks to our beloved Uncle George), rad effects and gore courtesy of FX artist Brandi Metaxas, and the wise choice to use low quality digital recording which gives the image a real grit and texture that added a veneer of “realisim” to the production!
Give the film a look-see for your own self by heading here, and see if it tickles your pus-filled pickle!
Let’s move on to 2015’s Hell Fire, also from writer/director Fratto!
Four prostitutes kidnap the antichrist when he comes to score some weed from his drug dealer who the quartet are putting a murder on… wait, what the actual fuck?!!
Fuck yeah that shit happens, then things get totally bananas as they take A.C. to a cabin in the woods where he promptly creates a demon thrall and after a bit of the ol’ ultra violence, things get positively “End Times”, ya dig?
Now this is what I’m talking about!
Hell Fire works so damn well because of the way it expertly blends well-established genres into an all new heapin’ helping of ghoulish goulash with a unique flavor all it’s own! We get a female-driven heist story, a cabin in the woods romp, and plenty of demons and deviltry and all of it grabs ya by the balls (or the lady balls) and takes you on one hell of a ride… pun always mother fuckin’ intended!
I urge you to haul your bony asses over to Tubi and check this one out pronto!