A surreal and dreamlike non traditional vampire film. I dug how she never sprouted fangs and you're left wondering whether being a vampire was all in her mind or perhaps an infection (as the vomiting suggested). I thought there was a definite nod to Martin in this regard. I've watched some painful shoestring budget flicks in my time but this definitely isn't one of them. After reading some of the scathing reviews I thought this would be an endurance test but instead I got one of the better independent horror films I've seen in awhile. Blood For Irina won't be for everyone. It's not a modern classic by any means but is a well crafted interesting film that I'm sure will find an appreciative audience.
The score really stood out (with the exception of the corny classical piece used in the title sequence) with it's great unnerving abrasive sounding parts for the tense moments. A decent score is a rarity in independent horror so this was a nice touch. The minimal dialogue really worked for me too. It kept the surreal vibe of the film going and didn't let the film fall into the trap of novice actors delivering clunky dialogue. Running just shy of 70 minutes Blood For Irina doesn't out stay it's welcome either. It's concise unlike a lot of lower budget flicks where the directors are to precious about their work to ditch unnecessary scenes that make their films drag. Nice cinematography too. I liked the unconventional shots like the sink scene and the figurative meaning in some of the establishing shots (like the shot of the exit sign).
Blood For Irina will alienate a lot of horror fans by perhaps being too "weird", slow burning and not having enough splatter or jump scares. There's some rough edges but this film shows the director has a lot of potential and is thinking outside of the square both stylistically and thematically. I'll be looking forward to seeing more of Chris Alexander's work. This was an ambitious film that knew it's limitations and worked well within them to deliver a solid directorial debut.
