The Toronto After Dark Spotlight Screenings kicked off with the horror comedy Bad Milo. Ken (Ken Marino) is a man with a lot of stress in his life. Not only does he have a jerk of a boss (Patrick Warburton), who puts Ken in charge of firing people, but both Ken’s wife Sarah (Gillian Jacobs) and mother (Mary Kay Place) are pressuring Ken into having kids. Then of course, there’s the ongoing issues with Ken’s estranged father (Stephen Root). As it turns out, all the stress in Ken’s life results in a demon popping out of Ken’s rectum and going after, and viciously killing, the sources of his stress. With the help of eccentric psychiatrist Highsmith (Peter Stormare), Ken hopes to bond with the monster, whom he’s named Milo, and help control its bloodthirsty urges. For what it is, Bad Milo was an incredibly fun film to watch. The film’s plot of a monster living up a guy’s anus is so inherently ridiculous that it’s not a film that should be taken too seriously. The film hearkens back to creature films from the 1980s, with Milo being entirely portrayed by a puppet. Even though there are times in the film when Milo is quite vicious and scary, there are others when he is absolutely cute and adorable. This gives the film a great contrast, especially as we begin to sympathize more with Milo. When it’s all said and done, the film leans a bit more towards comedy than horror. That said, there are still plenty of gory moments and the film features an obligatory chase scene during the final act. The film is at its best during the psychiatry sessions, especially since Peter Stormare is going all out in playing his oddball shrink. In a similar fashion, nobody plays a slimeball better than Patrick Warburton and he plays an absolutely hateable character in this film, in which you are begging him to get his comeuppance. Overall, I have to say that Bad Milo was a fun and gory film with one of the most adorable bloodthirsty monsters you will ever see. The film as a whole is a great throwback to creature films from the 1980s and it was wonderful watching a film in this day and age that did not have to rely on cheap computer-generated effects, which don’t have the same sense of realism as a puppet like Milo. 8 | LIKED IT
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