Hobo with a Shotgun (2011)

A story about a man down on his luck, a pedophile Santa Claus, a burning bus full of school children, and a shotgun.

Listen in as me and my returning guest, Dan, talk through this hyper-violent and wickedly fun homage to grindhouse exploitation.

Directed by Jason Eisener (The ABCs of Death, V/H/S/2) and written by John Davies (V/H/S/2), New York Magazine (Vulture) called the film an "unpretentious carnival of carnage" and the Globe and Mail said it was "a well-designed cinematic mess." I say that this film should be in the Library of Congress due to its deliciously juicy level of cartoonish violence.

It tells the story of an unnamed Hobo (affectingly played by the late and great Rutger Hauer) who rides the rails into Hope Town, a once idillic hamlet that has since fallen under the control of psychopath extraordinaire The Drake and his douchebag demon sons Ivan and Slick (played respectively by Brian Downey, Nick Bateman, and Gregory Smith). Hobo tries to keep to himself as he witnesses a public execution, a pedophile Santa kidnapping children, a lowlife making a Bum Fights-style video, and various other nasty bits of business. After seeing Abby (Molly Dunsworth), a hooker with a heart of gold, get roughed up he intercedes which sets him on a path which finds him inexorably entangled with the scum of the city. With his trusty Remington 870 in hand the Hobo hero starts to dole out street justice one blast at a time.

Dan may have been a bit shook by the rampant violence in this film, as many probably will be, but it really is rather comedic and entertaining with flashes of heart and sincerity. It's construction is pitch-perfect as it truly feels like it would hang with the best of the grindhouse sub-genre.

The film is currently available on Magnolia Secrets via Amazon Prime, Crackle, and get it on Blu-ray.