Customer Reviews

Hatred of a Minute

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

This film, despite having the names Bruce Campbell and Gunnar Hansen in it, is very flawed to say the least. Being made on a low budget, I could forgive the poor production values, but there is no excuse for the terrible acting, poorly written dialogue, and multiple truely dumb scenes. The dvd's insert has the director writing of his making of the film and he mentions how he studied films and got very much into horror. Well, the filmmakers did'nt learn a thing from all those films they supposedly watched.

The main character is the villian whom we are supposed to identify with. As a boy, he witnesses the abuse of his mother from a drunk stepfather. Then we fast forward to him as an adult and he suddenly looses it; just like that. No mentioned history of fighting, foster homes, abusing children, abusing animals, lighting fires; things that serial killers do/go through before their killing sprees begin. I know I sound anal with all this, but at least I took the time to research the subject matter; something these filmmakers didn't do. Yes, other movies don't mention these things about their serial killers either (Frenzy, American Psycho, Switchback), but they don't attempt to make their audiences sympathize with these characters by showing us their terrible past. If the director wanted his audience to sympathize with his main character, he should have took lessons from the film Peeping Tom. The director should also consider the following low budget films:
_ Blood, Guts, Bullets and Octane
_ A Better Place
_ El Mariachi
_ Deadbeat At Dawn
Although the acting may be ameteurish in some of these titles, it is compensated with clever dialogue, humor, good plots, very well staged action scenes, good make-up special FX (all of which are lacking in Hatred of a Minute).

Wow, read some of the bad reviews here on amazon and couldn't have said it better myself. I just felt the need to confirm all those previous negative comments because I felt this movie was an insult to my intelligence. It's a cliche love story minus the engaging drama meets a cliche serial killer movie minus the quality gore and with the look of some really bad late 90's tv show that begged for cancellation. Don't believe the hype just because Bruce Campebell's name is on it. Also, apparently it took 9 years to make this, wtf?!?!

I'm surprised that Bruce Campbell found this shoddy little film something to champion. It's extremely amateurish from start to finish, in writing, acting, and direction. It's nothing that you haven't see before a dozen times, and done much better. The thrust of the bonus material seems to be that since this is a totally independent film, it's something to be treasured. Maybe, but a little quality somewhere along the line would have helped. I was really ready to like this film,, but just couldn't do it. Even the bonus material is poorly produced. Who wants to watch tons of deleted and extended scenes from a film barely worth watching in the first place? A disappointment all around.

hmmmm..... how to descibe this movie??? Imagine if you were to tackle a feature length production but you didn't quite know how, didn't have any money and it took you almost 10 years to finish.... oh wait, that IS what this is!!
This movie starts off akward and you might feel like you made a mistake in purchasing it but actually gets better as it goes. You can almost see the first time director learn how to make a film as the movie progresses. odd, unbalanced shots give way to much better ones and the mise-en-scene, although way over the top is almost clever at times. You will laugh at times at mistakes, some bad acting and silly dialog but that happens when you are a newbie to film plus he shot it in michigan, its hard to find a good cast and crew in so. cal sometimes, i can only imagine the difficulty out there!! I really wanted to give this 4 but the production quality does hurt it. So if you wanna watch a straight forward movie about a crazy dude who starts hackin' up people, i say go for it! And look out for bruce campbells cameo's.........

A funny thing happened to me today at Best Buy while browsing for DVD's. As I flipped through the many titles, I came across this film, "Hatred Of A Minute" and I see the name Mike Kallio. My nostalgic brain started turnin' ... where do I know this name?

I used to party with this guy back in high school! It was crazy because I remember Kallio telling me about his movie plans and we had a blast bullsh*tting about the Evil Dead and how WE would make our horror films. The fact that Bruce C is in his movie is unreal!! I mean, we talked about that!

To find out that Mike Kallio has a movie in Best Buy is classic! I don't know too many people in the biz... but I can say that I knew this guy. The least I can do is buy the flick and support him for living his dream. I always knew this guy could do it. After watching it once, I was a bit scared of Kallio as a brutal creepy killer... I thought, man, he was a always so cool and chill. His acting freaked me out.

All in all, I thought it was a trippy popcorn flick with tons of old school horror shout out's with an edgy twist. I give the film props and the fact that Kallio did what I remember him saying he was going to do... speaks volumes.

As I did a google search to find out more about the movie, it lead me here to Amazon. Then, I read some of the reviews and I was laughing at the intensity of some of them!
What's the deal with some of these people ripping it apart like it was supposed to be Lord Of The Rings? Talk about HATER'S of the minute!

Almost all of the comments seem to be from film geeks who seem to be hating Kallio's version of fun. Horror IS fun and movies are just an escape for a little bit. Why the hell are these people buying or renting Independents and comparing them to other Independents? Isn't the whole point of Independent filmmaking supporting the movement?
Everyone's got an opinion and you can't make everyone happy when your a HATER. If you reviewers Hated it so much, why did you spend an hour out of your day ripping it?

I'm not much for reviewing every frame of the movies I watch... I try to enjoy them for what they are. Except for the movie goer Blood 66 (I don't want to type the third six) the comments seem to be from HATERS. I wonder what George Lucas felt like when people HATED the little kid in the newer Star Wars!!! Bad reviews are part of the game. I hope Kallio laughs them off and thanks these people for their support!!!

If your checking your reviews Mike, congrats on you selling your movie and making people buy it or rent it with a great title and a true follow through on your passion. The commentary track was cool. Good Luck with your next movie and tell Bruce C that he rocks!

To all those who read this review... check out the movie and have fun with a good guy's first flick. Just remember all the "greats" had first movies too and this one is right up there with some of them. Cause in ten years I predict Kallio will probably sit back in his phat screening room with a cold beer in one hand and a stogie in his other... thinking about the accomplishment of his first film and how the journey is far more satisfying than the destination.

DON'T HATE THE HATRED!

Summary:
Eric Seaver (Michael Kallio; Young Eric - Matthew Fennelly) has grown up with an abusive stepfather, Barry (Gunnar Hansen (II)), and a mother who has been trapped in the relationship, Linda (June Munger). Eventually Eric grows up and falls in love with a girl, Jamie (Tracee Newberry). Eric transcribes autopsy reports for his day job and moonlights as a screenwriter.

Harboring nightmares from his childhood, when Barry calls to inform Eric that Linda has died from a heart attack, Eric reluctantly agrees to go to the funeral, but has not gotten over the pain his stepfather has caused him. Spurred on by his demonic angel, Jack (Michael Robert Brandon), and despite the attempts of his good angel, Michael (Jeffery Steiger), Eric proceeds to bludgeon his stepfather once everyone else has gone home. He then carries him into the woods and proceeds to bury him alive.

Having crossed over into the realm of the wicked, Eric finds himself possessed by his demonic angel and wanting to kill again, and again, and again... So, of course, he does. But once Jamie starts detecting something wrong with him and he tries to strangle her, she kicks him out, seeking refuge with her best friend, Sarah Usher (Lisa Jesswein), whose husband happens to be Eric's best friend, Glenn Usher (Tim Lovelace), and a detective on the police force (which is rather convenient considering the low budget).

Once bodies start piling up, Glenn and Sarah realize who is doing the killing and come after Eric, but not before he is able to kill Sarah and a few other people. Eventually Eric works his way back to Jamie, but finds that he does not have it in him to kill her. Having previously told her that he loved her enough to die for her, he kills himself instead.

My Comments:
This is an independent film that was made for around $350,000. Nevertheless, a low budget is no excuse for an incredibly stupid story and gawdawful acting. Robert Rodriguez did better with $7,000.00 (see El Mariachi).

As for the story, it is utterly unconvincing. First of all, Barry, Eric's stepfather, has gotten on the wagon - no more alcohol actually translates into being a nice guy. But that doesn't stop Barry from just snapping on the day of his mother's funeral. As for his motivation for killing the rest of the women, he somehow gets it in his head that it is his job to kill them because they are suffering at the hands of their husbands, or something like that, but this only seems to hold true for one more of the victims, a girl he meets in a bar whose boyfriend is abusive. His motivation for killing people just seems to grow and doesn't make any sense. As for his relationship with his angels, the good one and the bad, it was completely undeveloped and never really made much sense.

What about the acting? Just like Michael Kallio, I spent the majority of the time pulling my hair out. As a matter of fact, I'm pretty sure the only thing Michael Kallio's character did other than stab people was put his hands in his hair, cover his face, and pull. That was how expressed sadness, fear, anger, frustration; I'm surprised that isn't how he laughed. He also seemed to be obsessed with his hair, as though it added some element to his character. In actuality, I liked Jack the Demon better (he had no hair) because I could see his face and it had expressions on it - Michael Kallio's sure didn't. The only actor who was even remotely decent in this film was Tim Lovelace, who played the cop. He wasn't great and he probably wasn't even really acting, but he seemed like a cop, so it worked. As for Tracee Newberry, she seemed to know her lines well, but her presentation was pathetic and, well, all she had to work with was Michael Kallio. Maybe with time she would get better, but she'd also need someone that could actually use her talents to good effect. Gunnar Hansen wasn't horrible, but neither was he great. It was actually kind of sad to see someone of his reputed fame in a film this bad. Oh well, no one will probably ever see it, so it shouldn't matter.

What about the special effects? The blood and gore weren't actually too bad, for the most part. There was the final scene where Eric had half of his face melted with steamed vegetables (ha, ha, yeah right!), which only made me laugh considering steamed vegetables might make his face a little red, but wouldn't hideously distort and melt it.

Overall, this is a top-notch horrible movie (not horror movie, horrible movie). The story is terrible. The acting is terrible. It's not worth your time, your money, or even reading this review. Do not watch this movie. I repeat, do not watch this movie.

When I first sat down with Michael Kallio's film "Hatred of a Minute," I expected yet another piece of ultra low budget sludge. You see, I've spent far more time than I should watching DVDs from companies like Sub Rosa and other bottom of the barrel distribution companies that put out shot on camcorder crud like "Shatter Dead," "Peter Rottentail," and other dreck. My opinion of the film changed somewhat when I noticed that Anchor Bay oversaw the film transfer and released the disc. That's always promising. Then I noticed none other than veteran ham Bruce Campbell was involved with the production. That's even more promising. When I started watching the movie and noticed that Kallio actually used real, honest to goodness film stock instead of Mom and Dad's camcorder, I thought I might really be on to something. Here's a guy trying to make an entertaining film on a miniscule budget, a veritable modern day Herschell Gordon Lewis or David Friedman. Well, the budget isn't that small, and the gore isn't of the type you would see in "Blood Feast" or "The Wizard of Gore." But the movie isn't terrible, and that's saying something when it comes to these low budget horror flicks.

"Hatred of a Minute," a title that apparently comes from a very short poem written by Edgar Allan Poe, tells the story of one Eric Seaver (played by Kallio himself). We quickly learn that Seaver is a vicious serial killer, a monster who preys on helpless women whenever the urge comes over him. In a series of flashbacks told as a story to one of his victims, Eric recounts the events that brought him to this sorry state. It all started with a childhood spent in an abusive home. Seaver's mother Linda (June Munger) made a colossal mistake when she married an alcoholic, physically imposing thug by the name of Barry (Gunnar Hansen!). The movie treats us to numerous scenes of Barry's violent binges, binges in which he mercilessly pummels both Linda and Eric. Even worse, he accompanies the attacks with barbaric, slurred insults that permanently affect our protagonist. To seek refuge from the beatings and emotional abuse, Eric withdraws into his own mind. He's still doing that in the present, too, carefully hiding his pain from those around him, especially his fiancée Jamie (Tracee Newberry) and his best buddy Detective Glenn Usher (Tim Lovelace).

Seaver's carefully constructed façade, propped up with his work as a transcriber of autopsy reports and his hopes for his screenplay, cracks and falls away after his mother Linda dies. The funeral brings Eric into contact with Barry, thus dredging up all the horrific memories of abuse years before. His stepfather tries to reconnect with his stepson, describing how he quit drinking and has turned his life around. Seaver doesn't want to hear apologies; he's regretful that he couldn't save his mother from the abuse, he's angry about it, so he decides to kill Barry with a toaster. He also decides that he can now save other women from abuse by murdering them. And so he proceeds to liberate female souls in the most brutal ways. Unfortunately for Eric, his activities occupy quite a bit of time, thus making his fiancée and his best friend suspicious that he might be the guy behind the sudden spate of killings. Moreover, Eric suffers hallucinations in which he sees an angel named Michael (Jeffrey Steiger) and a demon called Jack (Michael Robert Brandon) appearing from time to time to battle over his soul. He'll either have to turn himself in or follow his path to self-destruction.

"Hatred of a Minute" has a few good things going for it. I liked the somber, dark atmosphere of the film even though the idea of a tormented serial killer has been done to death over the years. I also enjoyed seeing Gunnar Hansen and Bruce Campbell in small parts--although Campbell's presence is limited to some old footage of his television work playing on Jamie's tube towards the end of the film. I'm very impressed Kallio decided to use film stock, not VHS tape, to make his movie. I wish more filmmakers would shell out the extra cash and put their vision on celluloid. What I didn't like about the movie are problems inherent in almost any small budget production. The acting is uniformly banal, especially Gunnar Hansen's turn as Barry. His death scene is actually unintentionally hilarious due to his poor performance. I'm also not sure Kallio should have played the lead character. He's not bad in the role, but surely someone else might have done a better job. Bad dialogue and cheap production values also plague significant parts of the picture. Despite the flaws, "Hatred of a Minute" is still light years ahead of most of the junk I've watched over the past couple of years.

The extras on the disc are overwhelming. We get two commentary tracks, one with Kallio and Campbell and one with Kallio and sound designer Joel Newport. We also get a bunch of deleted and extended scenes, outtakes, a poster and still gallery, and behind the scenes footage. The DVD even contains a recording of Kallio and Bruce Campbell premiering the movie in Royal Oak, Michigan. That's a lot of stuff to watch! I'm not sure the movie merits such bounteous supplements, but they do give the viewer some good insights into the trials and tribulations of low budget filmmaking. It took Kallio NINE years to finish this film. He ought to get some sort of an award for sticking it out and realizing his vision. "Hatred of a Minute" isn't great, but it's a capable film that shows the Michael Kallio has some talent. I'd watch another one of his films.

So what constitutes a real independent film? In a day and age where the latest fad of mainstream hollywood is to appear rugged and cutting edge, I'm sorry to say that what the general public tends to perceive as independent film is usually nothing more than a clever marketing ploy.

Which is why we should be glad that films like "Hatred of a Minute" exist. Across the board, this film makes a point out of contradicting its own template (indie horror film). Love it or hate it, "Hatred" isn't afraid of being what it is, and in watching this film, you get the real sense that Kallio (the director) didn't just make this film to spray fake blood all over the place, he's in this to tell stories. Good ones. You may find this film in the horror film section of your video store, but don't be fooled, this story is also about love, about good people pushed over the edge, and that oh-so-distant light at the end of the tunnel.

If you expect smut, or an Evil Dead ripoff, stay away from this film. But if you dig the finer points of the horror/suspense genres, check this film out.

Yes. Bruce Campbell did produce this movie, and I'm sure he's proud to tell anyone that it's not "Evil Dead". Bruce has never tried to bank on his "ash" image, and it's obvious that he didn't get involved with "Hatred" so that it could do so either.

My advice, though, to all Dead-ites rabidly devouring anything issued by Mr. Campbell is to check this film out anyway and see what else Mr. Kallio and Mr. Campbell are trying to show you.

The acting is well done, although nothing about this film is oscar caliber (perhaps intentionally), it's good to see compassionate performances in a horror film. So often, actors in films such as these don't even seem to try, with "Hatred", it seemed as though all the actors took thier charecters very seriously, never resorting to typical horror-film campiness.

Technically, "Hatred" is about as competent as indie film gets. The editing is fast paced, the cinematography is good given the budget, and "Hatred" keeps a quick pace, without any bog-down points or bad anti-climaxes.

All in all, Hatred may not have the glossed over look of all those [money amount]fake indies, but personally, I don't see a problem with that. It's a film by folks who actually care about the medium. People who reached into thier broke pockets, pulled out thier [money amount], threw caution to the wind and made a damn good movie.

Check this one out.

Hideously acted and just full of faux male angst, this movie is extremely easy to choke on. Just completely awful. Whatever possessed Bruce Campbell to associate his name with this drivel?

Jeez,.. the last reviewer is a lame-o. So, you didn't like this guy's movie. We get it. Get over yourself and find a hobby. I actually liked the film. It ain't academy award material but, whatever. There are alot worse movies out there. I met Mike Kallio at a screening at the Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood in June (2003) and he was a very nice guy. He knows his movie is't the best but, he GOT IT DONE! That takes alot of drive and determination. Where's the last reviewer's movie,.. OH WAIT! He probably doesn't have one. I gave this movie 5 stars because I wish I could make a film and this guy had the guts to spend 9 years on his dream. Don't be a lame-o like the last guy,.. The commentary with Bruce Campbell and Mike Kallio is worth it (Very imformative if you want to be in the business). Check it out,.. It's a creepy little film.