A pair of outlaw brothers seek temporary refuge in a desolate town inhabited by a small family of psychotic cannibalistic lunatics.

What happens when you are a pair of millennial robbers who barely survive a botched robbery who inadvertently flee to a desolate town of crazed cannibals in the middle of nowhere? You suffer, of course. In the new thriller Drifter Dominic (Drew Harwood) and Miles (Aria Emory) have jumped out of the frying pan and into the fire when they end up in a grimy, ghost town that has rules far more dire than that of the outside world. Sadly the slick editing and top-notch makeup effects are about the only takeaway from this average thriller.

The town they land in is run by a man named Doyle (James McCabe). A psychotic Bomb Pop with fire engine red hair and a Captain Spaulding fashion sense who loves a quite night at home, TV with the family, and a piping hot plate of human flesh at the dinner table. The two robbers’ luck is short as, on upon landing in the town, well-meaning hovel dweller Vijah (Monique Rosario) at first tries to hide them from the town ruler. Of course they are discovered, and then the film falls into the familiar territory of grimy goofballs beating and torturing our protagonists until we are left to wonder, “How long are these guys gonna last?”

Truth be told Drifter features some beautiful cinematography from Tobias Deml that pops like a flickering neon sign against the desert sky. The editing by Chris Visser too is remarkable, adding a snap to the scenes that it wouldn’t have otherwise. We would also be remiss if we didn’t mention the phenomenal work by Gabriella Castellanos and her makeup team. There are some beautiful moments that induce squirms, while painting the townsfolk in  an interesting way.

You could do worse than watch Drifter, but this sort of feels like a light version of both a Tarintino movie, a Tobe Hooper film, and a Rob Zombie flick who didn’t know what to do once they imitated what they liked. There is good work here, and it is entertaining to be sure. But with a familiar story and scenes that linger and show us stuff we already know. Had this Drifter moved a little faster we might not have noticed some of the bigger issues.