Abruptio is a 2023 American adult puppet horror film written, edited, and directed by Evan Marlowe. Produced by Kerry Marlowe, the film stars James Marsters, Hana Mae Lee, Christopher McDonald, Jordan Peele, Robert Englund, and Sid Haig in one of his final films before his death on September 21, 2019.
Abruptio had its world premiere online at the Santa Monica Film Festival on January 17, 2023, prior to its theatrical release by Anchor Bay Entertainment on September 27, 2024.
Plot Les Hackel is an office worker who lives with his overbearing mother and is recently dumped by his girlfriend Allison. One night, while chatting online with his best friend Danny, he reveals that they both have bombs implanted in the backs of their necks.
As Les arrives at Danny's house, Danny pulls out a gun and attempts to kill him, but hesitates and is unable to go through with it. As a result, the bomb implanted in Danny's neck detonates, killing him. Les then discovers a suitcase and receives a text message instructing him to open it at his office without informing anyone—under the threat of death. Upon opening the suitcase at work, a toxic gas is released, killing everyone in the office as Les escapes unharmed.
Les later arrives at a nightclub called Diamonds and Purrls, where he meets Sal Cheek, a struggling comedian whose act fails to amuse the audience. Like Les, Sal also has a bomb implanted in his neck. The two are subsequently sent to a suburban home where they are ordered to kill the family residing there. After carrying out the gruesome task, they receive a message instructing them to kill each other. In response, Les decapitates Sal with a shovel.
Afterward, Les is apprehended by a police officer named Dennis and brought to a station where he is interrogated by Police Chief Richter. Richter demands that Les "confess" to an unspecified crime, but when Les is unable to comply, he is strapped into a device known as "The Confessional" and subjected to electrocution. He later awakens on the side of the road with a piece of paper bearing the word "think."
Les then arrives at a warehouse, where he meets Clive, a sarcastic and abrasive English man. The two are instructed to rob a convenience store together. During the heist, Clive knocks Les unconscious, steals the money, and leaves him tied up and abandoned in the warehouse.
Later, a young woman named Chelsea arrives after being assaulted by a group of men. Les and Chelsea flee the scene and drive back to the house where the earlier killings occurred. As they begin to form a bond, Chelsea persuades Les to bury the family's bodies. During the process, Les discovers barcodes on both his and Sal's necks, revealing personal statistics and further suggesting they are part of a larger, orchestrated system.
Les later receives a message directing him to meet a man named Mr. Salk, a meticulous clean freak. The two are instructed to dispose of several dead bodies by throwing them into a set of large spinning blades. Among the bodies is Allison, Les's ex-girlfriend. Mr. Salk hesitates and is unable to complete the task, resulting in the detonation of the bomb implanted in his neck.
Les and Chelsea awaken to a song that Les recognizes, which is revealed to be emanating from Sal's body. Les cuts open Sal's stomach and discovers a USB drive inside. Upon plugging it in, the drive displays a combination of Egyptian hieroglyphs and binary code. Les then opens a nearby door, briefly revealing a surreal hellscape and a massive, alien-like creature before quickly shutting it. When the mysterious song begins playing again, Les, believing he may also have something hidden inside him, attempts to cut open his own stomach, but is stopped by Chelsea.
Les visits his doctor and recounts the bizarre events he has experienced. The doctor, believing Les to be delusional, commits him to a psychiatric facility. There, Les meets a nurse named Victoria. While exploring the hospital, Les discovers a hidden room where he witnesses a surgical procedure involving the implantation of a bomb into a patient.
Les eventually finds himself in a secretive location known as "The Colony," where women are being impregnated by aliens to produce alien-human hybrids. Disturbed by what he sees, Les instructs Victoria to destroy the alien eggs. However, one of the eggs hatches, and the emerging creature attacks Victoria as Les escapes from the colony.
Les and Chelsea travel to an abandoned amusement park called LA LA Joyland, a place Les remembers from his childhood. While exploring the park, Chelsea is knocked unconscious by Clive, who has returned and attempts to kill Les. Les hides atop the rollercoaster tracks and strangles Clive to death with a rope.
Afterward, Les encounters two alien beings. As he returns to his car, Chelsea—now implanted with a bomb in her neck—is compelled to kill him. Les, however, undoes the stitches on her neck, stunning her. He then steps through a mysterious door, which transports him back to his parents house.
Les discovers that his mother is harboring a brood of alien-human hybrid infants in the garage. He kills her with a pair of hedge shears and sets the garage on fire after dousing it with gasoline. Les is once again apprehended by Officer Dennis and brought back to Chief Richter.
Subjected once more to "The Confessional," Les experiences a flashback revealing that, while driving drunk, he struck and killed a biker and did not report it. This incident prompted him to quit drinking and begin attending Alcoholics Anonymous meetings. Satisfied with this long-suppressed confession, Richter releases Les.
Chelsea, revealed to have survived, reunites with Les. Richter suggests that the biker's family deserves to know the truth and Les and Chelsea share a kiss.
Back in his bedroom, Les calls 911 and prepares to confess his crime as he transitions from a puppet to a human.
Cast
Production Voice recording Voice recording started on May 23, 2015, in Los Angeles, California, with Evan Marlowe serving as cinematographer. Recording sessions wrapped on December 2, 2017.Abruptio News In December 2017, several actors were confirmed to have voiced characters, including James Marsters, Robert Englund, Sid Haig, Jordan Peele, Hana Mae Lee, and Christopher McDonald.
Production On September 23, 2019, the film's crew relayed their feelings towards the passing of co-star Sid Haig, while confirming they would finish production on Abruptio soon, for a then-projected release in 2020. In April 2020, Marlowe revealed information about the film's production:
In a June 2020 interview, the film's director Evan Marlowe revealed that with "six years in, we're still not quite halfway done filming. We plan to pick up where we left off in the coming months." In August 2020, production resumed, with coronavirus safety protocols in place, including limited crew members. Filming wrapped on March 4, 2021, before post-production wrapped by March 2022. In August 2022, the film was completed.It only took 7 years but Abruptio is Done
Release Theatrical Abruptio was theatrically released by Anchor Bay Entertainment on September 27, 2024. The film had its online world premiere at the Santa Monica Film Festival on January 17, 2023. The film also streamed online at the Cinequest Film & Creativity Festival on March 1, before its physical screenings on August 26 and 29, 2023.Abruptio Cinequest It had its public theatrical premiere at the Panic Film Fest on April 15,Panic Film Fest ScheduleAbruptio at the Panic Film Fest before having its International debut at the Fantaspoa Film Festival on April 28 and 30Abruptio at the Fantaspoa Film Festival and its European premiere at the Dundead Film Festival on May 12.Abruptio (European Premiere) It also played theatrically at the Malibu Film Festival on May 21,Abruptio at the Malibu Film Festival the Dark Bridges Film Festival on June 4,Abruptio at the Dark Bridges film festival the Lighthouse International Film Festival on June 9, the Desertscape Film Festival and Days of the Dead Indianapolis Film Festival on June 23,Abruptio at the Desertscape Film FestivalAbruptio at the Days of the Dead Indianapolis Film Festival the Film Invasion LA festival on June 25,Abruptio at the Film Invasion LAFilm Invasion LA programme the Galacticat Film Festival on June 26 and 29,Abruptio at the Galacticat Film FestivalThe Galacticat of Tàrrega Expands its Format in the Tenth Edition of the Festival, Dedicated to the Classic 'The Exorcist'Galacticat Film Festival program the Motor City Nightmares Film Festival on July 28,Abruptio at the Motor City Nightmares Film Festival the Atlanta Underground Film Festival on August 4,Abruptio at the Atlanta Underground Film Festival the Popcorn Frights Film Festival on August 12,Abruptio at the Popcorn Frights Film Festival the Rhode Island International Film Festival on August 13,Abruptio at the Rhode Island International Film Festival the Macabro Film Festival on August 18 and 19,Abruptio at the Macabro Film FestivalMacabro Film Festival Events the HorrorHound Film Fest on August 20,Abruptio at the HorrorHound Film Fest the Days of the Dead Los Angeles Film Festival on August 26,Abruptio at the Days of the Dead Los Angeles Film Festival Grimmfest on October 8,Abruptio at Grimmfest the Atlanta Horror Film Festival and the Fargo Fantastic Film Festival on October 14,Abruptio at the Atlanta Horror Film FestivalAbruptio at the Fargo Fantastic Film Festival the Fright Nights Film Festival and Ramaskrik Film Festival on October 19,Abruptio at the Fright Nights Film FestivalFright Nights Film Festival Time Table the TOHorror Fantastic Film Festival on October 20,Abruptio at the TOHorror Fantastic Film Festival the Tucson Terrorfest and the Chicago Horror Film Fest on October 22,Abruptio at the Tucson TerrorfestAbruptio at the Chicago Horror Film Fest the Cine-Excess and Tysvær Skrekkfest on October 27,Abruptio at Cine-Excess the Nightmares Film Festival and the Vortex Film Festival on October 28, the Curtas Festival of the Imaginary on October 31,Abruptio at the Curtas Festival of the Imaginary the South African Horrorfest on November 2,Abruptio at the South African Horrorfest the Night Visions Film Festival on November 11,Abruptio at the Night Visions Festival the Buenos Aires Rojo Sangre Film Festival on November 23 and 24,Abruptio at the Buenos Aires Rojo Sangre Film Festival and the Soho Horror Film Festival on November 30.Abruptio at the Soho Horror Film Festival The film was originally set for release in 2021.
Home media The film was released on Blu-ray, DVD and Ultra HD Blu-ray on December 10, 2024.
Reception Critical response