Elain-ee The Wild Man of the Navidad is as authentic as a retro horror film can get. Every detail from the garish 'Tenocolour' opening credits, down to the local yokels delivering their stilted dialogue, seems to have been deliberately crafted to give the impression that one is watching an old school slasher film/public television documentary from the early 80s. The only reminder that one was watching a modern film was a hunter's wife wearing a noughties-style outfit halfway through the film. If it weren't for that detail, I would have doubted that I was watching a film from the 21st century.Other reviewers critiqued the films flaws but to me it was obvious that these flaws are intentionally left in, because they add so much to the retro B-movie vibe. That the film isn't technically perfect just shows the film makers expertise in making retro films. I found the characters amusingly whacked-out and the Wild Man scenario a funny, bizarre variation on the Texan massacre theme. It wasn't the scariest film ever but the wild man attacks kept the action moving along at a fast pace.So if you are in the mood for an twisted but fun little horror flick then The Wild Man of the Navidad is the movie for you.

lovecraft231 Dale (Co-Director Justin Meeks) doesn't want to open his ranch to hunters, but has to because he needs the money. Too bad for him (and them) that a bloodthirsty creature is not keen on trespassers.Produced by "Texas Chainsaw Massacre" writer Kim Henkel, "The Wild Man of the Navidad" doesn't owe a lot to that seminal classic. Instead, this is more inspired by other 70's Horror/Exploitation fair such as "The Legend of Boggy Creek", "Creature From Black Lake" and "The Town That Dreaded Sundown", with a bit of slasher movie inspiration to match. If the film has one thing going for it, it's that it genuinely feels like a Southern Drive-In Horror Flick from the 70's-the weird, off-kilter score, the bad acting from a cast mostly made up of locals and non-actors, the cheap monster costume, the grainy look, the ultra low budget, almost documentary like feel, the unconvincing gore(who knew intestines looked like cooked steak?)-I could go on and on.And it's watchable, decent stuff, but not without it's flaws. While bad acting and long stretches of dialog are to be expected out of a movie like this, it really starts to get annoying. The directors also reveal too much of the creature too soon, though it's cheap look has it's charm. The conclusion is also something that needs some work-it just kind of ends, without any real sense of wrap up. Finally, the slow burn style doesn't hurt for the large part, but it even tested my patience eventually, and I tend to be a patient man.Can I recommend "The Wild Man of the Navidad?" Well, it depends. As a movie, it's decent but too flawed to be enjoyed by some, and those expecting a really fun movie will feel bored. As I said though, the fact that it genuinely feels like an old Southern Grindhouse flick will certainly appeal to those who love such movies, and is worth a look to any curious horror fan.

Scarecrow-88 I'm one of those kind of horror fans who supports the efforts of dye-in-the-wool buffs living the dream, putting together whatever monetary funds they can scrape up in order to make a little homage to movies that inspired them. That's not to say there hasn't been a fair share of rotten apples along the way, particularly within the slasher genre. But in the past few years I've come across a number of flicks made by horror buffs on peanuts which have more enthusiasm, energy, and verve, while also containing elements hardcore horror fans can enjoy such as Gutterballs, Hatchet, Behind the Mask:The Rise of Leslie Vernon, among others, than most high-budget fare without a soul churned off the Hollywood machine these days. I think The Wild Man of Navidad is such a film, and it pays loving homage to films like The Legend of Boggy Creek, with nods to The Texas Chainsaw Massacre(..in particular, the "room of bones" scene, except this time we see the remnants of the wilderness man-beast's meals over the past few days, the camera lens closing in tight showing buzzing flies entering gaping wounds in rotted flesh)as well.The movie focuses on the oddball trio of Dale S Rogers(Justin Meeks who also co-wrote / co-directed), his paraplegic wife(played by his relative, Stacy Meeks), confined to a wheel-chair after a devastating car crash, and pot-bellied Mexican hand, Mario(Alex Garcia)who keep the hostility of a carnivorous half-human / half-animal at bay through skinned rabbit meat each night at 9:00, while also containing 600 acres of prime hunting land off-limits to those who desire to use it for their leisure as deer season starts up. Through mounting medical bills, Dale sees few alternatives to make some necessary quick-cash, opening the land for local hunters, resulting in one of them firing off a shot directed at the wild man of the woods, sparking a violent, bloody rampage resulting in humans being ripped apart and eaten.I think what made this work for me was using real areas in Texas and locals from nearby small towns who would act for little to nothing while tolerating demanding conditions. Directors Duane Graves and Justin Meeks studied under the tutelage of Kim Henkel(who wrote the screenplay for The Texas Chainsaw Massacre and directed The Texas Chainsaw Massacre:The New Generation)who was teaching at a Texas college they attended. There's a good use of the rural setting and people who live there. The southern "hick" accents are thick and unrestrained and these people actually look like those who would live in a small rural area where everyone knows each other. The acting itself is often suspect because you are dealing with a great many non-actors who have never been in a film before. Graves and Meeks accentuate a variety of stylistic shots, using any number of make-shift apparatus which could compliment the scenes and characters, giving them an extra boost due to their limitations in budget. I believe an actor discusses a little buggy the duo rigged up as a rolling vehicle substituting for a dolly they couldn't afford..this is the same kind of motivation and ingenuity often elicited on Hooper's TCM.The gore scenes are shot in a way to obviously avoid confronting the fact that they had little in regards to effective make-up effects. We see screaming victims, blood all over the place, the girth of the wild man(..always covered by skins)nearly engulfing the frame with animal guts tossed throughout from off screen. Not every filmmaker has access to a Tom Savini or Greg Nicotero, so these young guys combat their restrictions any way they possibly can. I think something has happened as the opportunities for obtaining cameras during the digital age have evolved..it seems that the attempt at developing and maintaining atmosphere and dread has dwindled. I'm not sure what it was about low-budget film-making in the 70's that gave it an edge and power that seems hard / difficult to duplicate in this day and age where anyone can make a movie with the right kind of support in place. I think Graves and Meeks give it everything they have in their being to establish dread and atmosphere, attempting to evoke that spirit the 70's had..but, again, it remains untouched. This is 2009, not 1974, but filmmakers continue to strive for tapping into the "grindhouse wellspring". Charlie Hurtin, as local back-stabbing moonshiner Karl Crabtree(..he practically took Rogers' steel welding job from him), also provided the very restrained, quietly moody score. Seems the film is a sort of tribute to Charles B Pierce, the director of The Legend of Boggy Creek and The Town That Dreaded Sundown and The Wild Man of the Navidad almost succeeds. It does have the eccentric, colorful sort of Texas citizenry one might find in a film made by Pierce or others during the 70's, lacking only that needed atmosphere that seemed to be in abundance during that decade.

bends1 Wild Man is a truly great flick for those of us who love the great horror films of the 1970s that often tried to add a nice hunk of realism and earthiness to their bloodshed. In a day where the movie theaters are flooded with remakes and attempts at creating a nostalgic older quality while flooding us with Mickey Mouse Club rejects, this movie is a fresh breath of air. I watched it, and I kept thinking, Wow, I know a lot of people like this. Some, definitely not all, of Texas definitely has characters like it throughout..and the region of Sublime as portrayed in the film is spot-on for this group of folks. Dale is a very realistic character as well, as actor and director Meeks carefully treads the line of guilt and despair Dale feels without being too in-your-face about it. The music, close shots and the setting add to the sense of doom that pervades the film. Definitely worth seeing!