He never died (2015)

Summary :

Jack's in a rut. Depression and severe anti-social behavior has whittled down his existence to sleeping and watching television. Seeing the human race as little more than meat with a pulse, Jack has no interest to bond with anyone. There's little purpose for him to make friends with someone he'd eventually eat or outlive by more than a millennia. The fuse is lit when Jack's past comes back to rattle him. Jack must now walk a tight rope of sobriety and try to eat as few people as possible in this violent tale of personal responsibility.

Genre : Horror/Comedy
Country : USA/Canada

Cast :
Henry Rollins : Jack
Booboo Stewart : Jeremy
Steven Ogg : Alex

Director : Jason Krawczyk

My opinion

“My landlord thought I was robbing my own appartment.
Really? Isn’t your landlord, like, 90 years old?”

A brilliant, original horror. That's what you might say after watching "He never died". A subtle mix of sometimes gory images and clever humor. And this shown in an even surprising way by Henry Rollins, the former frontman of the legendary punk band "Black flag". A bundle of muscles who already surprised in the past with his poetry. And now he shows that he's also capable to take a leading role for his account. His stoic calmness and indifference create hilarious situations several times. And the story on his own is contrived in such an original way. I watched with amazement and after a while I was wondering what the hell it was about anyway. Did it have something to do with vampirism? Was Jack a solitary zombie (due to his grayish look) who attempts to remain anonymous? And what about those demonic and satanic sounds he sometimes makes?

Jack (Henry Rollins) seems depressed and drags on through life as a worn out man. The only things he does to fill his days is sleep, eat something in the same small restaurant and occasionally play bingo among the elderly. Waitress Cara (Kate Greenhouse) tries to change Jack's fatalistic attitude. But she isn't really successful in doing that. Jack clearly isn't enthusiastic about her flirting. Most of the time a quiet, nondescript look is his answer to it and then he turns his back on her without blinking. Also, his daughter Andrea (Jordan Todosey), who appeared out of nowhere, can't break down this erected wall of aloofness. It's obvious Jack isn't an ordinary, average citizen. The title of the film, of course, reveals much and isn't really a spoiler. Apparently Jack is immortal and needs his dose of blood on a regular base. When his blood supplier Jeremy (Booboo Stewart) (an intern who works in a hospital, I suppose) runs into trouble with a local gang of criminals, he's no longer able to provide Jack with the much needed blood. After his daughter is being kidnapped, all hell breaks loose with the obvious casualties. Except Jack, of course ...

Rollins is a performer and this movie was the appropriate stage for him. His imperturbable gaze and brute force gave him a Schwarzenegger-like appearance. The limited conversations with brief, evasive answers contributed to the overall tone of this absurd film. A fatal head injury made such an impression on him as a tiny splinter in his finger. Unmoved he uses pliers to treat the injuries. At that time I wondered whether it was meant humorously or creepy. He's an emotionless bloke who storms through a decaying society like a bulldozer, full of rage and aggressiveness. At first Jack seems to be a dull figure, but when his true identity is revealed in the end, his way of reacting and his world-weariness is justified.

I'm afraid that "He never died" will only appeal to a limited audience . And I belong to that limited audience. I appreciate such an absurd horror filled with brutal violence and a special storyline once and a while. The subtle humor was enjoyable. And above all, they made sure it didn't become a parody. "He never died" exceeds all horror-comedy up to now. And probably until eternity ...