Review - High Desert (1993)

High Desert (1993)

Review By Ryan Reading

 So, what’s up with SOV movies from Vegas? There are so many incredible ones! After revisiting Soul of the Demon, I needed to watch High Desert for the first time to complete the Charles Lang double feature.

High Desert is Charles Lang’s second and last film. The first, being the aforementioned, Soul of the Demon. I had been whining, as I tend to do, about a much needed Soul of the Demon DVD/Blu-Ray release, when a buddy asked if I had seen High Desert. I had not, so I immediately added it to my watch list.

We have a local group of bikers cruising through the desert when they stop at a local watering hole. Frank is acting like an asshole, annoying a young waitress named Pam, her co-worker, and her friend. Annoyed enough, Pam reluctantly agrees to a game of pool. She ends up beating Frank easily; making him despondent and angry. This pool sequence is eloquently shot with music that rivals any after hours Cinemax movie. The gang then splits the bar.

Frank, now back at his cabin, is doing lines of coke. Everyone in Frank’s life thinks he is going crazy, including his girlfriend. He orders her to “kill that fucking bitch”, before cutting her shirt off with his knife and doing a line off her bare chest.

The next morning, Frank is still lamenting losing a game of pool to Pam. T, Frank’s right hand man, mentions hearing about the group’s camping plans. He sets his sights on torturing the group and they hit the road to Temple Mountain.

This is a biker flick with plenty of gun violence, some nudity, and vague-hints of Last House on the Left influence. It is a departure from Mr. Lang’s previous horror film, but it is done well. The dialogue is great, most of the actors deliver solid performances, and the excellent camera work, with some beautiful shots, really make this film quite enjoyable.. All in all, above average film that is very entertaining.

Sadly, this is out of print, as well. It is included in the Millcreek/Pendulum Pictures collection Decrepit Crypt of Nightmares. If you have not seen this (and you need to), go check out eBay and snag a copy. I would give this three out of five biker titty tattoos.