The Beach Party at the Threshold of Hell

The story–written and directed by and starring Kevin Wheatley–meanders, jumps around, and pretty much confuses people and probably pisses off more. The characters fight, eat other people, struggle against and abuse one another; indeed, few lovely virtues exist in this depiction of the American future. But there is a guiding light, a journey, the quest to create a New America that pulls the protagonist along his path, and the strange characters, the wry humor, the clever filming, and adequate acting make the quest enjoyable for those of us ready for something outside the prepackaged, three-part, half-digested films you see all the time.

It pulls on mythology including immortal beings akin to the Greek gods controlling fire though in this case they control a radio tower, a mystical seer who sees the future, and the archetypal tale of brothers competing for power. I'm not gonna lie, I like films that allude to the great works of literature, that include the vast collective unconscious in their scope, but this film is so obvious about it, I'm afraid it loses some of it's "intelligencia" points, which is just as well. There is a bit of violence, but it's stylized after graphic novels, so even the most gruesome scenes never make one cringe in the same way a Terentino film can. BPonTH holds the attention, causes a few double-takes and ultimately feels worth the Ritalin-esquire ride.