Anti-Bullying Horror Slapface Smacks of Sloppy Execution

Jeremiah Kipp’s Slapface doesn’t soften its anti-bullying stance, nor would I hope for anything less. Horror’s fearless approach when spotlighting macabre themes offers storytellers the unique opportunity to confront traumatic darkness head-on. Carrie, Unfriended and Some Kind of Hate all take drastically different approaches to investigating the consequences often produced by harassment, but Slapface struggles to keep stride with more glowing examples. Writer/director Kipp expands his short into a feature that at times struggles to elongate an otherwise poignant message, leaving other worldbuilding details behind in a way that undercuts structural integrity. I’m all for awareness, but wonky narrative stumbles aren’t ignorable.
Loner adolescent Lucas (August Maturo) lives amidst woodland poverty with his brother Tom (Mike Manning), abandoned after both mother and father die in a car accident. While promoted patriarch Tom works manual labor to pay their bills (and his Coors Light consumption), Lucas flees from schoolyard bullies, including his secret girlfriend Moriah (Mirabelle Lee). Sheriff John Thurston (Dan Hedaya) warns Tom that Lucas will find himself in serious trouble someday, but Tom has no answer beyond working himself thirsty and hopeless. Lucas is left unattended for hours, which is how he meets an otherworldly entity known to locals as The Virago Witch—who becomes the isolated boy’s protector and only friend.
Slapface names itself after a “game” Tom and Lucas play, taking turns smacking each other’s face raw as a means of frustration exertion. It’s the only way Tom knows how to distract Lucas from their looming tragedy, but represents only one aspect of Lucas’ violence-ruled existence. Twins Donna (Bianca D’Ambrosio) and Rose (Chiara D’Ambrosio) torment Lucas by throwing stones or rubbing his nose in dehydrated fallen leaves. Virago massacres to please its newfound companion. Everyone shows Lucas that pain is the only way to feel anything, especially when Moriah partakes in Donna and Rose’s hurtful pranks. Kipp’s screenplay best displays Lucas’ reality, shared by many other targets of bullying—he’s told over and over that torment defines his worth. It becomes routine, even a learned personality trait.