Blood, Sweat and Terrors (2018)

(On Cable TV, October 2019) Anthology films often get some deserved flack—by design, they’re a collection of smaller, lower-budgeted efforts often executed without narrative or even tonal consistency. Blood, Sweat and Terrors is more prone to these criticisms than most other similar movies in that it’s an authentic collection of shorter movies often made and distributed before being collected here. Unlike other anthologies, the movies were not all specifically commissioned for the project, and aren’t wrapped up in a larger frame. That last element can have an influence on audience reactions to the first few segments, as it becomes clear that the first one wasn’t meant to be a framing device for the others à la VHS. Unlike many other anthologies in which the theme is horror-based, Blood, Sweat and Terrors focuses on thrills and action, although not necessarily on a realistic register: some do end up in fantastic territory and many more take a rather heightened approach to filmmaking. Opinions will vary on the results. Opening segment “Empire of Dust” gets from a shootout to a demonic explanation, but it sets a tone that the rest of the film can’t quite follow. “Awesome Runaway” is, conceptually, more interesting but it stumbles in its execution: As a fever dream of someone idealizing an escape with over-the-top heroics, it’s not executed finely enough to fully realize its ambitions. “Jacob’s Wrath” is more ponderous in the ways it mixes reality with imagination, but I was pleasantly surprised to recognize Ottawa’s own Shaw Centre as a shooting location, and realize that filmmaker Alexandre Carrière is local. The best segment in the film is “Express Delivery,” which mixes some savvy action filmmaking, funny one-liners and enough plot to make it interesting: writer-director/star Beau Fowler has often used the film as a calling card and it’s easy to see why. The other noteworthy entry here (opinions will vary) is the closing “Fetch,” which packages a bit of neo-noir into a short but amusing package. The Canadian representation here is high considering that it’s packaged by Toronto-area production companies. Despite the international pedigree of maybe half the entries, Blood, Sweat and Terrors qualifies as CanCon for broadcasting purposes—meaning that it’s going to be a fixture of at least one cable channel for years to come. It’s not a bad choice if you’re an action/suspense fan looking for a few quick bits to watch: The quality is uneven, but the next one is usually better.