‘Rites of Vengeance’ (2017) Short Film Review

I’m a huge fan of revenge films, being one of my favorite sub-genres of horror/thrillers. It’s a genre I can’t get enough of, so when I was offered the chance to review Izzy Lee’s short revenge film Rites of Vengeance, I jumped at the chance. Here are my thoughts.

Rites of Vengeance is a short film from writer/director Izzy Lee (Innsmouth 2015). The film stars Silvia Graziano, Stee McMorris, Heather Buckley, Michael Thurber, Thorben Stone, and Ada Storey.

Synopsis:

A trio of nuns take matters into their own hands when a priest commits a terrible sin.

Rites of Vengeance is short, sweet and to the point. It is a story about a trio of nuns taking revenge on a priest for a sin he has committed. We aren’t told what exactly he did, but there is enough evidence to point you in the right direction. I loved the tension of the piece, which is invoked mostly through the cinematography and the score (both my Jarret Blinkhorn).

The actors do a wonderful job of conveying their emotions using nothing but glances and body language (there is no dialogue). You feel the rage of the nuns and well as the terror of the priest in his final moments. One of the things that I thought gave the short a sense of complexity was how meticulous the nuns were in their actions. Such as wearing gloves and such to not implicate themselves for their crime, which if what I inferred the priest sin to be, it was righteous and deserved action.

Final Thoughts 

Rites of Vengeance is an excellent horror short from a talented filmmaker. The film delivers its story and message with body language and music without a single spoken word, which isn’t easy to do but they executed it beautifully. Rites of Vengeance is a short full of great vengeance and furious (and righteous) anger that is well worth the watch.