Reviewed by Colin Jacobson (February 1, 2022)
Most films under the Shudder imprint offer live-action horror stories. For something different from Shudder, 2021’s The Spine of Night provides an animated fantasy tale.
Forces controlled by cruel Lord Pyrantin (voiced by Patton Oswalt) attack the peaceful swamp dwellers of Bastal. In the process, they capture lead sorceress Tzod (Lucy Lawless).
Before long, Tzod manages to escape. Once free, however, she faces betrayal from a supposed ally (Jordan Douglas Smith) and this leads to an eons-long battle between good and evil.
At the start, I noted that animated fantasy differs from the Shudder template, but no one should go into Spine with thoughts that they’ll find kid-oriented fare. The film uses its format for violence and nudity that would clearly get it an “R” if it underwent the MPAA rating process.
Unfortunately, the filmmakers substitute this graphic content for engaging characters and/or story-telling. A messy melange of cliché fantasy, bloody content and weak production values, Spine becomes a barely watchable drag.
Rather than focus on the negative, perhaps I should discuss what goes right with Spine.
Hmm.
Huh.
Can I get back to you on that?
Guess not. Actually, Spine comes with fairly well-rendered backgrounds – at least in a relative sense. No one will view the backdrop art as amazing, but compared to the rest of the project, this material dazzles.
Because those behind Spine made it as a shoestring-budget labor of love, I really do hate to come down hard on it. However, Shudder asks potential viewers to pay real money to own this disc, so the filmmakers don’t just get an “A for effort” when they want $30 for the product.
In no way does Spine vaguely resemble a professional animated film, mainly because it comes with shockingly ugly character art. Honestly, the various roles look like a marginally talented 12-year-old drew them.
Catty as that may sound, it really proves true. Nothing about the character art ever looks like an adult did it, and this leaves Spine as far below standards expected of a commercial animated release.
A rotoscoped affair, the movement of the animation seems decent, but given the nature of that technique, motion feels surprisingly awkward. Granted, the clumsy drawings damage everything else about the project and it becomes tough to rate the animation objectively, but these elements still fail to rise above what I might expect from a home-made project such as Spine.
If Spine mustered a smart, involving narrative, I would object to the animation/art issues less. Unfortunately, the film does nothing more than offer an anthology of cliché characters and ideas, none of which feel fresh or creative.
Despite the story’s era-spanning scope, the various segments don’t link well, and they just feel contrived and stale. We get stilted, awkward dialogue and plot points they never add up to more than excuses for graphic content.
At its core, Spine thinks it gives us a deep, far-reaching philosophical narrative. Instead, it just doles out pseudo-profundity that displays little insight or impact.
Given the amateur nature of the production, Spine features a cast with some actual known actors. In addition to Lawless and Oswalt, we find performances from Richard E. Grant, Joe Mangianello and a few othee recognizable “names”.
How did these folks wind up here? I would assume that when the studio acquired the flick, they ponied up the dough to bring in a few famous folks and add to its sales appeal. The “making of” program on this disc doesn’t discuss these actors, so I find myself left with this speculation.
Despite the talent of those performers, they do nothing to elevate their stiff, thin roles. All overact in a manner that matches the cheesy art.
Again, I kind of hate to wax so negative about a movie made by a small group of people on a low budget, and if Spine came as part of a student film festival, I would go easier on it. But as a movie we’re intended to accept as a professional, studio release, I can’t judge it as anything other than an amateurish flop.
