‘Drifter’ Has Style to Spare but is Overwhelmed by Relentless Sadism

Two brothers drive along a desolate wasteland in their beat up car. If there was a cataclysmic event that transformed the world into a land of heathens covered in blood and dust, it happened some time ago. That’s the basic idea on display in Drifter, the feature length directorial debut of Chris von Hoffman. The young director shows that he certainly has an eye for capturing magnificent images pieced together with crisp editing and kinetic camera movements. However, Drifter is lacking in the story department and becomes a tiresome exercise in seeing just how much sadism can be crammed into a 90-minute movie.

Dominic (Drew Harwood) and Miles (Aria Emory) are two brothers that traverse this wasteland in their beat up old car. The life of a drifter has left Dominic hardened yet still protective of his brother who is a little bit slow. Being in possession of a car places a target on their two heads but Dominic is a crack shot that can blast bullets and foes in order to escape any jam they find themselves in. When they pull into a small town the two siblings find themselves entering a twisted little burg that seems to be populated solely by sadists. Only Vijah (Monique Rosario) extends any kind of human decency and warns the two to be careful in wandering the streets, as the town in run by Doyle (James McCabe) and his bloodthirsty gang of sadistic villains, including Latos (Anthony Ficco) and his girlfriend Sasha (Rebecca Fraiser). Survival is the name of the game in this ghastly world and it won’t be easy to make it out on the other side alive.

At first, the screenplay by Chris von Hoffman and Aria Emory establishes a horrific world that the two brothers must traverse. They certainly do a good job at hooking the audience without over explaining the desolate the world that the characters populate. As the film goes on there’s just nothing else to this world than desolation and ultraviolence. Everything that was interesting about Drifter just fades as it never materializes into a coherent story as much as violent characters trying their best to survive the sadistic tendencies of even more violent characters. Without any events to escalate the story or really an endgame in sight, Drifter just drifts off into an exhausting display of brutality.

Even though Drifter devolves into unrelenting sadism, you still have to admire the visual panache that von Hoffman brings to his movie. While I think Drifter as a whole underwhelms because of its story, von Hoffman and cinematographer Tobias Deml craft some stunning imagery, shots that are textured and vibrant. The look of Drifter at times seems heavily influenced by the original Texas Chainsaw Massacre and the recent works of Rob Zombie. There’s a verve on display to the look and style of Drifter that has me interested in whatever von Hoffman follows up with, though I certainly hope he’d be working with a better script.

Violence isn’t story and that’s the real disappointment with Drifter. This movie really does have some great stuff to look at but lacks in a script that makes the violence mean anything than a grotesque series of sadistic events. Chris von Hoffman proves that he’s a filmmaker with an eye to capture some fantastic images. All that’s left to prove is whether or not he can make those images mean something beyond visceral violence.