Review: HALLOWARRIOR is a Thrilling Halloween Home Invasion Treat

When you're a kid, candy is candy. Sure, we'd flock to the "King" cul-de-sac in the affluent part of town first, but we didn't pass by the "Fun Size" households along the way. KitKats and Milky Ways still taste great in bite-sized form, much like Hallowarrior, Ben Sottak's "Fun Size" Halloween indie. Its budget probably equals a studio production's catering bill, but that doesn't diminish Sottak's ability to deliver a festive, down-and-dirty October treat that barely runs 80 minutes.

Hereditary's Milly Shapiro stars as lil' old Pumpkin, the only girl left in the world (or so she thinks). Her radio distress calls have gone unanswered for years, since the last of her family passed away. Pumpkin lives alone in her farmhouse, carving jack-o'-lantern faces into objects while fending off her loneliest thoughts. She loves Halloween so much that she hides an alter ego, the "Hallowarrior." But this Halloween, Pumpkin finds out she's not alone on Earth, and danger comes a-knocking.

Sottak's dystopian concept runs on Home Alone energy, since Hallowarrior is about Pumpkin defending her mini fortress from invaders. She's aided by Ajani Russell's Wendy, who betrays her clan and aids Pumpkin after gaining entry. There's not much story to tell, since Sottak keeps his apocalypse nondescript and focuses on Pumpkin's journey—her pain, the strength she finds, and the demons she vanquishes. Good characters inside need to keep the bad characters outside, and if that fails, kill 'em all. Simple, savage, and to the point.

The Halloweeny details of Hallowarrior define the film's charm. Pumpkin's jack-o'-lantern obsession keeps her house "haunted" with cut-out smiles, adorns her jack-o'-lantern knitted sweater, and even details her Hallowarrior gas mask (which she wears to boost her confidence). Candy serves as Pumpkin's nourishment (sugar products stay preserved the longest), but it also helps improve the defense traps laid around the house. Autumnal warmth soothes like a weighted blanket as Sottak embraces the commercial visuals of Halloween wherever possible. It's a holiday-horror mood setter, from color palettes to soundtrack cues and beyond.

That said, there's a slightness to Pumpkin's story. Hallowarrior is the definition of low-budget, so the action is contained to a single house, with little room to let the break-in siege rip. Sottak's resourceful work with what he's got is admirable, and Shapiro has a softness that we yearn to protect, but the gravity of her predicament doesn't always shine through. Flashbacks in home videos to Pumpkin's Hallowarrior origins and the redecorating she does inside—or her family's graves outside—are a compelling touch that toils in grief, and yet still feels underdeveloped when she's asked to be the action-girly later on.

Thankfully, Hallowarrior delivers when the vibes shift from a cautionary hospitality tale to an all-out horror bamboozle. A. J. Bowen and Shannyn Sossamon lead a group of deranged survivors who want Pumpkin's comforts, like Danny McBride's roving maniacs in This Is the End. That's when Sottak turns up the heat, and his special effects department earns their keep. Pumpkin and Wendy's booby-trapped sweets and hidden razor blades help them fight the maniacs outside, with a few gnarly gore shots that rock by indie standards. Torn-out guts, melted masks that scald flesh, and a few more surprises escalate tension to a worthy degree—and that's before the drug-induced berserker mode engages.

Hallowarrior is a humble slice of Halloween horror pie that tastes of all the season's signature flavors. Sottak dives headfirst into everything genre fans adore about October 31st, overindulging in orangey hues, weaponized urban legends, and the frights that lurk behind shadows. Budgetary restraints are visible, and audiences will track obvious restrictions, but that's par for the indie horror course. What stands out is how Sottak doesn't crumble under shoestring filmmaking and bends Hallowarrior to his capabilities without sacrificing his overall vision. The kind of feature debut that puts filmmakers on watch lists (the favorable kind).

Movie Score: 3/5