Primal Rage: Bigfoot Reborn (2018)- Practical FX and Great Gore Set This Bigfoot Movie Apart From the Rest- Fitz of Horror Review

Written by Bryan Fitzgerald (Fitz of Horror) May 6, 2018

Synopsis-Lost deep in the forest of the Pacific Northwest, Ashley and Max Carr are stalked by a terrifying creature that might be Bigfoot. Soon they find themselves embroiled in a strange land of Native American myth and legend turned real. Hopelessly trying to survive, with a handful of unsavory locals, they must fight back against this monster in a desperate battle of life or death.

When I first heard about Primal Rage I thought we were getting a live action send up of the classic video game but to my surprise it was a Bigfoot movie. After following the Primal Rage Facebook page (hey that rhymed), seeing more stills and finally watching the trailer I couldn’t wait to see this movie and it lived up to the expectations!

When Ashley (Casey Gagliardi) picks up her husband Max (Andrew Joseph Montgomery) after doing a stint in prison, they travel a long stretch of Pacific Northwest highway to get home. After a little backstory on each of them and their rocky relationship the trip home takes a turn for the worst when they hit a man crossing the highway. Upon inspection of the man they soon discover that something else has happened to him besides being hit by their Jeep. This is also the moment you realize that the practical FX in this film are top notch and very realistic.

After reporting the accident to the local authorities something begins to hurl large rocks at them and the Jeep. This leads to the beginning of the chase that pits them against a Bigfoot the likes of which we have never seen on film before and finds them reluctantly teaming up with a group of extremely unlikable rednecks with guns that dislike Max and like Ashley maybe a little too much.

The film is steeped in rich Native American lore and excellent mythology of the legendary creature they refer to as “OH MAN”. This version of Bigfoot wears tree bark as body armor, utilizes weaponry and has a serious dislike for gun toting humans. Please don’t let this deter you from watching this movie because it is an absolutely fresh take on sub genre of horror films that usually just changes the look of the Sasquatch and tells a different story.

Patrick Magee’s Primal Rage reminded me a lot of my beloved Predator (1987) whereas we get to see more of the Bigfoot utilizing his surroundings as camouflage as he hunts the redneck hunters and dispatches of them in ways that are both very brutal and very creative. There were definitely some other aspects that reminded me of Predator almost as if Primal Rage was paying homage to the Schwarzenegger classic.

Primal Rage is a great new horror movie with some throwback elements that you will definitely appreciate. It is an amazing practical FX creature feature that doesn’t shy away from the gory money shot and offers a new twist on an old tale that I love so much.

I can’t recommend Primal Rage enough. It is currently on VOD formats (Amazon, Direct TV) and is well worth your hard earned $5.99

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