Good evening, House of Madness butchers:
Karma is a bitch. Good people don't normally enjoy the misery of others, but if the victim of hard times has committed deeds worthy of some revenge of the gods, then who are we to intervene? It'd be a lot easier to sympathize with someone's awful predicament if they weren't a piece of shit all the time, and brought nothing but selfishness and greed to the table in a world that could really use a helping hand. Sometimes it's just best to let nature run its course, and if the guy down the street that refuses to put pants on every morning as he checks the mail gets attacked by a raven thinking his manhood is breakfast, who am I to step in and argue with karma? Sometimes the art of natural selection is on full display, and sitting back while watching the show is not only the best course of action, it's also the most entertaining.
"The Price We Pay" starts off with Grace (Gigi Zumbado), a woman down on her luck in seemingly all facets of life, trying her best to make due with what she's got. Unfortunately, what she's currently got is a big debt to a perverted pawn shop owner named Mr. Fuller (Heath Hensley), and he's insisting she pay up with actions rather than objects. As the situation intensifies, three masked men storm through the front doors, and they're not there to ask everyone if they've found Jesus in an effort to recruit them to their favourite church. Mr. Fuller runs out into the store from his back office guns ablazing, and is quickly disposed of with a lethal bullet to his upper torso. True karma probably would have been getting his dick blown off, but I suppose a simple death will suffice - I don't want to seem greedy. Another employee is disposed of unnecessarily by Alex (Emile Hirsch), the loose cannon of the troop, much to the chagrin of his brother Shane (Tanner Zagarino) and their alpha Cody (Stephen Dorff). During the heist, their getaway driver decided it was time to jet, so now the three bandits are left with a duffle bag full of cash, and nowhere to go. While all this is happening, Grace is watching in horror on the security cameras inside Fuller's office, and decides to make a break for it. Cody hears her footsteps, quickly tracks her down, and realizes the car in the parking lot belongs to her. Perfect.
As Grace drives aimlessly, the three men try and decide their next course of action, as they can't call their boss who set up the heist until the job is done, and with the getaway driver MIA and an unexpected hostage, the plan is far from done. After narrowly avoiding a roadblock, their fates are once again tested when the car breaks down in the middle of nowhere, and the only refuge in sight is a barn off in the distance. The group sets out towards the barn in order to let things cool off for a few hours, and the only sign of life they encounter is a teenager named Danny (Tyler Sanders), who reluctantly agrees to letting them stay in one of the farmhouses as long as they're gone before his grandfather gets home. All would be well if Alex and Cody were capable of co-existing without constantly butting heads, but Alex doesn't like loose ends or possible snitches, so he heads back into the barn to ensure Danny can indeed be trusted.
Alex finds a hatch leading down below the barn, and the group's real nightmare into Karmaland is about to take flight. Soon after, Danny's grandfather 'The Doctor' (Vernon Wells) returns with Danny's mother Jodi (Erika Ervin), the woman in which The Doctor deems responsible for the inception of the underground horrors Grace and her new posse are about to uncover. It seems The Doctor really believes the horrors he's been committing are a service to humankind, and takes pride as well as pleasure in all of his 'work', as he repays what he perceives to be karma to the long-lost memory of the man that made Jodi the hideous monstrosity she now looks at in the mirror.
How much karma is actually coming their way, and just how much of it is warranted for either side? One thing I know for sure though, now that Jodi is single, if you come across her profile on Tinder, swipe left!.....unless you want to find out the price you have to pay.
Madness Meter: 5.4/10
NB
