Vulcanizadora
Attired in wire-rimmed glasses and a wide-brimmed camo sun hat with a back flap, non-stop talker Derek Skiba (Joel Potrykus, "Buzzard") is on a mission in the Michigan woods, accompanied by his moodier, tattooed friend Marty Jackitansky (Joshua Burge, "Buzzard," "The Revenant"). While both behave like juveniles, Derek begging Marty to shoot him in the face with a bottle rocket when he's not exulting over a couple of porn magazines a cousin buried a while back, they are set on carrying out a horrific pact because of serious mid-life crises, Derek lamenting his failure as a family man while Marty faces prison for burning down a "Vulcanizadora."
Laura's Review: B+
Writer/director/editor/star Joel Potrykus ("The Alchemist Cookbook") reintroduces the two characters from his 2014 film "Buzzard" with a blast of heavy metal, cinematographer Adam J. Minnick ("Buzzard," "Chained for Life") framing them in a close up dual profile. As they venture into the woods, Marty indulges Derek in his hyperactive antics, aiming a lit bottle rocket after Derek's multiple video takes of 'My name is Derek Skiba and you're watching Faces of Death,' but Derek's shocked when the firework whizzes past his head, accusing his friend of 'almost hitting him.' This silly bit of idiocy is more meaningful than may first appear.
Derek seems to be intent on enjoying a camping trip while Marty is cold, wet and fed-up. He'll ask Marty to build a fire, Marty's apparent knowledge on the subject 'part of the reason we're out here,' before swilling Jaegermeister, attaching speakers to a portable CD player, outfitting himself in a headlamp and glo-sticks and singing Godsmack's 'Voodoo.' After Derek lights up a pile of black snake fireworks, Marty unveils something he's made, an M-80, but after a bit of fun with that, Derek sours, reminding Marty of hundreds of dollars he owes him. Marty replies that it doesn't matter because they're not going back. The next day, Marty spots pink ribbons tied to trees, demanding Derek tell him what they are. 'These are for you to find your way back, aren't they?' We won't understand the foreboding of that statement until they arrive at the beach, Marty revealing more of his handiwork while Derek begins to question their mission.
After the cool, claustrophobic darkness of the forest, Minnick gives us a white hot expanse, Lake Michigan stretching out into the horizon. And it is in this bright light that everything changes, the humorous odd couple hijinx morphing into soul searching atonement with Potrykus' dissolve to Derek's son Jeremy (Solo Potrykus) in a Grand Rapids playground signaling the ground-shifting change in tone.
This is a film that has elements of both James Wan's "Saw" and Kelly Reichert's "Old Joy," an indelible mix of friendship, doubt, despair and expiation. Past traumas infiltrate the present, one allegorical cleansing leading to another after the legal system fails to right wrongs. In Derek, Potrykus creates an irritating man child whose persona acquires unexpected poignancy. Ironically, the more Burge's quieter Marty tries to speak, the less he appears to be heard, the actor's soulful eyes expressing his desperation. Both men's voices can be found in Potrykus's use of Maria Callas singing 'Casta Diva' from Bellini's opera Norma alternating with that opening heavy metal.
With "Vulcanizadora," Potrykus goes very dark expressing fears of familial responsibility and the need for absolution. His approach, two very different films united by a midpoint jaw-dropper, is astonishing and a true original.
Robin's Review: C
Oscilloscope Laboratories releases "Vulcanizadora" in select theaters on 5/2/2025. Click here for play dates.
