...as befits a tongue-in-cheek B-movie horror comedy about ovine monsters, "Black Sheep" turns out to be a bit different from what its trailer represents, but that's not a bad thing. The leads are strong (if otherwise unrecognizable to American audiences, and so what?), pretty much across the board, and production values are high, with very nice camera-work by (predominantly second-unit) DP Richard "Avatar" Bluck, fine fx work from Weta "LotR" Workshop, and solid helmsmanship from Kiwi writer/director, Jonathan King, who wisely surrounded himself with plenty of talented people with whom he's previously worked. There's a droll sense of humor that permeates "Black Sheep," and, for me at least, it worked nicely. It's not quite in the same league as films like "Shaun of the Dead" or "Dead Alive" or "Fido," but that doesn't detract from its charms. Its tale of woolly experimentation gone awry mines a great deal of familiar territory (I won't bore what few readers I'll get here with yet another recap), but the central conceit of docile ruminants transformed into carnivorous beasties along with their human prey leaves plenty of room for thematic jokes (eg. the effects of mint jelly on weresheep) within the beautiful environs of New Zealand. Recommended to fans of the comedic horror genre; those looking for serious chills will be disappointed.
Review of Black Sheep
