If Del Shores were to take a whack at Texas Chainsaw Massacre-style filmmaking, he might just turn out something like director Tony Olmos's unique and occasionally inspired BayView Entertainment release Hemet, or the Landlady Don't Drink Tea. The film stars Brian Patrick Butler as Liz Topham-Myrtle, a wealthy, or so she tells us, Hemet, California landlady with a penchant for capitalizing on a crap economy, a crappier epidemic, and flesh-eating zombies.
Liz has her tenants wrapped around her fingers and she knows it, though in Hemet she takes it to extremes. It's not just Liz here who's a bit extreme - every character here isn't someone you'd want to be alone with in an alley and the cinematic spiral that we find ourselves in is occasionally quite funny, other times dramatic, and nearly always fueled by a paranoia-tinged darkness that's interesting to watch even when it doesn't always completely gel.
Hemet isn't likely to work for everyone. Heck, I'm pretty sure it didn't even work for me. However, for those who embrace its weirdness wrapped by undeniable messaging there's still much to enjoy here.
The film is dependent on the performance of Brian Patrick Butler as Liz, whose persona is nearly explicable and begging to be understood but whose presence is also warped, deadly, overtly sexual, and impossible to ignore. It's the kind of role that audiences will exasperate themselves trying to figure out, though I can't help but think if we sat down with Butler he'd be able to explain it all beautifully. There's social commentary bubbling underneath the surface of Hemet, a smalltown hysteria that did, indeed, make me think of Del Shores on multiple occasions yet there's no denying this is a cinematic beast all its own.
It bears mentioning that Butler's also the writer here, his dark humor radiating throughout even some of the bits fall flat and the end spirals to its conclusion just a wee bit quickly for my liking.
Kudos to Olmos for snagging a strong ensemble capable of bringing this unique material to life. Kimberly Weinberger is particularly strong as Rosie and Matthew Rhodes adds just a hint of emotional resonance as Gary. Others make us hate them like Nick Young's Tank, though despite her sheer lunacy I never found myself hating Butler's turn as Liz.
Lensing by Justin Burquist accomplishes quite a bit for a low-budget indie and the original music by Anton Elms helps maintain the film's unique narrative rhythms.
Truthfully, I can't really say that Hemet worked for me. I never really liked it. I never really hated it. I was consistently intrigued by it and admiring of its unique cinematic voice and Olmos's ability to bring Butler's storytelling to life. The film no doubt has its audience and here's hoping the folks at BayView Entertainment help it find its wider audience. Released this weekend on all the usual streaming platforms, Hemet, or the Landlady Don't Drink Tea may not be everyone's cup of tea but for those who appreciate the ballsier side of indie cinema this may very well be a film worth checking out.
Written by Richard Propes
The Independent Critic
