Content Advisory: Self-injurious behavior, Suicide
Two best friends go on a self-destructive camping trip in Vulcanizadora. Derek (Joel Potrykus) and Marty (Joshua Burge) travel into the wilderness for a camping trip. The two films themselves lighting off bottle rockets and doing drunken campfire dances with glowsticks and Godsmack. However, as they get closer to their destination, the intention of this trip becomes more clear.
Vulcanizadora Synopsis
Vulcanizadora is a darkly comic drama written and directed by Joel Potrykus (The Alchemist Cookbook), who also stars in the film, along with Joshua Burge, as the central protagonists of Derek and Marty. Derek is a failed father and Marty is a career criminal, awaiting punishment for his latest crime. The two hike through the woods and find hidden stashes of porn and express their regrets about their failures. However, when it comes time to act on a pact, the dynamic between the two irrevocably changes.
My Thoughts on Vulcanizadora
Vulcanizadora is a hard film to pin down in a single genre. Much of the film involves stupid camp shenanigans straight out of Jackass, before suddenly moving into a horror movie scenario that wouldn’t seem out of place in a Saw film. Probably the element that would make or break Vulcanizadora for viewers is the film’s much more dramatic final act, revealing just how pathetic the lives of these characters are.