He Never Died (2015)
a review by Evan Landon
This one is gonna sound a lot like my review of Girl On The Third Floor because much like CM Punk, I absolutely love Henry Rollins and in my eyes - the man can do no wrong! I remember the first movie I saw him in was a science fiction thriller called Johnny Mnemonic that starred Keanu Reeves, Ice T, Dina Meyer, Takeshi Kitano, Udo Kier, & Dolph Lungren( in his final role for 15 years until 2010's The Expendables). Henry Rollins, however, went on to do some more acting in movies like Heat alongside Robert DeNiro & Al Pacino, David Lynch's Lost Highway, & Villainous Cinema's very own 13th podcast episode of FEAST. He actually did an entire spoken word tour that was incredible, so you should check that out when you get a chance because it was fantastic. Rollins was also the lead singer of The Rollins Band (such generic name) and some Hot Topic t-shirt band called Black Flag..? Jk.
Anyways, I will admit that this movie was very confusing. There is a guy who brings him blood to drink, but you never really find out whom this kid is. I think the actor's name is “BooBoo” & that is the extent of what I know about this person who is second billed, but in the movie for like 5 minutes. Then, you are introduced to a woman at the local cafe, to whom has a crush on Black Flag so hard, she does everything but not get a tattoo on her neck. Then his daughter shows up, who is more of a plot device than a character, & asks him where he has been her entire life until she is kidnapped by people who want to exploit his immortality through cannibalism. Like.. he is cannot die because he eats people.
Now, this sounds like a badass movie, right? Ehhhhh..
I hate to say it, but this amazing premise with Henry Rollins at the helm churns out a very lackluster feature length film. The dialogue is droll, the characters are undeveloped, and the story drags on with scenes that sometimes feel like they have no end. Some characters even disappear & reappear in the very next scene, but it's not important enough to even really notice because none of them are established, have an arc, nor are even memorable. Even the main antagonist is maybe on screen for a total of 15 minutes, most of it is his final monologue and death scene.
I will give this movie that though: the death scenes can be fun and imaginitave, even though I feel like they could have been a little bit more gruesome. I really gotta stop saying that in every review...
Anyways, nothing reputable about the script, acting, or storytelling. The audio, lighting, cinematography, action, & death scenes are purdy awesome considering the budget. I guess watch it for that, plus an intense, monosyllabic performance from one of the greatest wordsmiths of our age. Plus, he eats people, throws them off buildings, thru windows, and plays bingo.
2.5 out of 5