THE BREED

Five friends, near the final college exams, decide to spend a vacation on a deserted island. The islet had been used in the past as a training site for guide dogs for the blind, but a sudden outbreak of rabies had led to the culling of the animals and the closure of the training center. The five young people will soon find themselves facing a terrifying reality: some dogs still roam the island and are inexplicably fierce and stronger than normal. Does anyone remember a small film from 1977 titled "Il Branco", which has become a classic of eco-vengeance? Well, "The Breed" is a sort of revisitation and updating according to the canons of the modern teen-movie, completely leaving aside the marked ecologist and misanthropic tone of the 1977 film and focusing on the tight action and easy fright. This film is part of the now numerous group of films "presented" by Wes Craven (the well-known director of "Nightmare" usually appears as executive producer) and, like most of them, turns out to be an enjoyable and not at all pretentious product. The limits are immediately evident, starting with a story that is not original at all and covers all the bases regarding beast movies and eco-vengeance; and here comes a series of situations and script solutions seen and reviewed dozens of times: the restricted group of protagonists, the isolated and vulnerable refuge, the animals made aggressive by human action, science capable of causing damage, the purifying fire. In short, the sense of déjà-vu in the more experienced viewer will be much greater, further increased by the characterization of the main characters, all representing the classic stereotypes of the American teen-movie. However, what at first glance might seem like obvious falls into the inevitable stereotyping, upon closer inspection, appear mainly as deliberate script choices that tend to celebrate and almost parody the genre, a bit like Kevin Williamson has done on several occasions ("Scream" and "The Faculty"). Just think of the moment when the most useless character (the classic black guy who dies first) delivers a brilliant monologue on the roles that the different protagonists play in the story! Here and there you can catch some quotes from "Night of the Living Dead" and "Tremors", as well as a hilarious verbal reference to "Cujo". The gore is within the norm: some bloody sequences but nothing more. The artistic cast consists of very few actors (seven in total), little known to the Italian public, except Michelle Rodriguez ("Resident Evil", "Fast and Furious") in the role of Nicki, one of the protagonists. The direction is by Nicholas Mastandrea, director of the second unit in many films of his godfather Wes Craven ("La Casa negra", "Nightmare New Nightmare", "Scream", "Cursed"), and turns out to be absolutely anonymous; the screenplay, written by Robert Conte and Peter M. Wortmann, as already said, may seem banal as a whole, but there are several good ideas that elevate the dialogues and the construction of some scenes above average. In conclusion, "The Breed – La Razza del Male" is a classic summer release film: fast, carefree, and fun; in short, entertainment of manner, a very enjoyable product that is savored in the moment, but has no long-term effects.