| HOBO WITH A SHOTGUN | |
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Theatrical release poster |
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| Directed by | Jason Eisener |
| Produced by | Rob Cotterill Niv Fichman Paul Gross Frank Siracusa |
| Written by | John Davies |
| Starring | Rutger Hauer Molly Dunsworth Brian Downey Gregory Smith |
| Music by | Alexander Rosborough |
| Cinematography | Karim Hussain |
| Editing by | Jason Eisener |
| Studio | Rhombus Media Whizbang Films Inc. Yer Dead Productions |
| Distributed by | Alliance Films Magnet Releasing |
| Release date(s) | January 21, 2011 (Sundance) March 25, 2011 (Canada) |
| Running time | 86 minutes |
| Country | Canada |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $3 million[1] |
| Box office | $703,372 (U.S. Only)[2] |
Hobo with a Shotgun is a 2011 Canadian exploitation film directed by Jason Eisener and written by John Davies, starring Rutger Hauer.[3] It is based on the winning trailer of the same name from Robert Rodriguez's South by Southwest Grindhouse trailers contest.[4]
Contents |
A hobo (Rutger Hauer) arrives in a lawless place called Hope Town (graffiti sprayed over the word "hope" on the town sign makes it read "Scum Town") via freight train. Scum Town is ruled with an iron fist by The Drake (Brian Downey) and his sadistic sons Ivan (Nick Bateman) and Slick (Gregory Smith). Just as he arrives, the Hobo witness the execution of The Drake's brother Logan (Robb Wells), who is decapitated at the hands of Ivan and Slick for trying to do some unexplained thing.
The Hobo later visits a pawn shop, where he sees a lawnmower costing $49.99. In order to buy it and start a lawnmowing business, the Hobo starts begging for change on a sidewalk, where he sees Ivan and Slick entering a building. He follows them into an arcade and witnesses them harassing a boy named Otis, who owes them money. A prostitute named Abby (Molly Dunsworth) attempts to stop them. Slick decides to kill her, but the Hobo knocks him unconscious and takes him to the police station in order to turn him in. However, the police chief reveals his corruption and allows Slick to escape. He and Ivan beat the Hobo up and carve the word "scum" into his chest before throwing him into a garbage bin. He runs across Abby who takes him to her apartment, where she tends to his wounds. The next day, the Hobo goes to a local cameraman who pays homeless people to inflict harm upon themselves. Upon completing a series of degrading acts, including eating glass, he earns enough money to purchase the lawnmower. As he is about to buy the lawnmower, a trio of robbers enter the pawnshop, taking a woman and her baby hostage. The Hobo grabs a shotgun from the shelf to kill the robbers. Realizing that Hope Town needs justice, he chooses the shotgun – which also costs $49.99 – over the lawnmower, and goes on a rampage, killing dozens of criminals, including the cameraman and a pedophile dressed as Santa Claus.
The Drake, infuriated by the positive effect that the Hobo's actions are having on the townspeople, instructs Ivan and Slick to get rid of him. After using a flamethrower on a school bus filled with children in order to remind the citizens of Hope Town that they are to be feared, they burst into a television station during a live news broadcast, kill the anchor (played by George Strombolopolous in a cameo role) and demand that all homeless people be killed, leading to the formation of mobs which start attacking vagrants. One of the mobs hears the Hobo using the shotgun to save Abby from a perverted cop intending to rape her. The mob starts running towards them, but they are able to make a clever getaway. However, Otis sees them and calls Slick to inform him of the Hobo's location.
As the Hobo and Abby are preparing to leave Hope Town to start a lawnmowing business somewhere else, they are attacked by Ivan and Slick, who seriously wounds Abby before the Hobo is able to force Ivan to flee by threatening to shoot his brother. Once Ivan is gone, the Hobo kills Slick. The Drake hears of this and calls Rip and Grinder (Nick Bateman and Peter Simas), a duo of armour-clad demons known as 'The Plague' (watchful eyes will notice in an arcade earlier in the film, Otis is playing a Double Dragon-style video game about The Plague), to take the Hobo down. The Hobo takes Abby to a hospital, where he is ambushed by The Plague, captured, and taken to The Drake, who intends to execute him in front of the townspeople in order to set an example. Meanwhile, Abby, having recovered, takes the Hobo's shotgun and the lawnmower for use as weapons. She then rallies together a crowd of angry people and leads them to hunt down The Drake.
Abby finds and confronts Drake, Ivan and the Plague. She threatens to kill Ivan with the lawnmower, but the Drake shoots him first, deeming him expendable. In the ensuing fight, Abby releases the Hobo and returns his shotgun to him. She also kills Grinder before The Drake cuts her hand off with the lawnmower. She, however, manages to incapacitate The Drake by stabbing him with her exposed arm bone. Rip then tells Abby that she must join The Plague to replace Grinder, but the Hobo refuses to allow her to do it, and The Plague departs. The Hobo prepares to finish off The Drake, who was trying to crawl away to safety, when the corrupt police arrive. The townspeople decide to take a stand between the Hobo and the police, but the Hobo refuses to have them sacrifice themselves for him and shoots The Drake in the head. The police open fire, killing the Hobo, and are killed by the townspeople in retaliation.
In an extended ending that was cut from the final cut of the film, Abby's hand is replaced by several shotguns as she becomes part of The Plague.
Hobo with a Shotgun, directed by Jason Eisener, was initially a fake trailer made for an international contest to promote the release of Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez's double feature Grindhouse.[5] It won the contest, and was screened in some areas of Canada as part of the actual release of Grindhouse.[6] A feature-length version of Hobo With a Shotgun began principal photography in Halifax on April 19, 2010.[7]
A teaser trailer (including behind-the-scenes and test footage) was released on April 26, 2010.[8]
It was the second of Grindhouse's fake trailers to be turned into a feature film, the first being Rodriguez's Machete.[9] David Brunt, who played the homeless man in the trailer, has a cameo appearance in the film as a cop.[10]
Hobo with a Shotgun staged its world premiere at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival.[11] The film was released limitedly in Canadian theatres March 25, 2011[12] and in the United States on May 6, 2011.[13] The film was also released via OnDemand services such as Xbox Live, PlayStation Network and iTunes on April 1, 2011.[14]
The film received its Australian premiere on the opening night of the Sydney Film Festival on 8 June 2011. It was later released on DVD and Blu-ray Disc in the United States on July 5th 2011 and in the UK on July 15th 2011, where it was given a BBFC 18 rating.
Reviews of the film are generally positive, and it currently holds a 66% "certified fresh" approval rating out of 107 reviews on the review aggregate website Rotten Tomatoes, the general consensus being, "It certainly isn't subtle – or even terribly smart – but as a gleefully gory homage to low-budget exploitation thrillers, Hobo with a Shotgun packs plenty of firepower."[15]
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