'The Domestics' (2018)

The Youtube algorithm has pretty much given up on me at this point and just throws me anything that it thinks might hold my attention for more than a few seconds. Stories about dogs being rescued are always a decent bet as are those 'Kill Count' videos for movies where, you know... And that's where I first came across 'The Domestics' the other day. Now, I used to be a domestic assistant (in a psychiatric hospital) which may be why I never bothered with this movie when it first came out. Shows how wrong I was... What I got was a four and a bit minute clip of people dying in all sorts of ways against a weird looking backdrop of post-apocalyptic suburbia. And last night, after the day I'd had, it turned out that was just what I needed for an evening's viewing. Let me tell you all about it.

In a terrifying post-apocalyptic world inhabited by sadistic gangs divided into deadly factions, Nina and Mark race desperately across the devastated and lawless countryside in search of safety and must work together as they are pushed to the breaking point in order to survive.

That is it, that's the whole film :o) What the film doesn't tell you is that Nina and Mark were in the process of divorcing when the Apocalypse happened and there's a side plot around whether the constant threat of death will bring them back together or push them apart. You can guess which but that's ok, 'The Domestics' has a few other surprises ready for you.

One of these is just how up front this film is prepared to be about what led to the apocalypse; the rich elite want a 'reset' and wipe out hundreds of millions of people with a lethal dose of crop dusting. I'm pretty sure 'The Domestics' must have won a prize for 'quickest apocalypse' on the big screen. Blink and you'll miss it but it doesn't matter too much if you do; the real story isn't in the why of the apocalypse, it's in the how you live with it afterwards and whether you can live with yourself in the meantime. Most of this is covered in the depravity of the gangs that have arisen from the ashes but watching Nina and Mark fight their way through is a sweet counterpoint to the terror. It's easy to let go of your humanity but you don't have to. You can make a life for yourself that doesn't involve killing everyone else, just be ready to if you need to. I'm still not sure what the point of introducing all those gangs was if we hardly get to see most of them though... I mean, what we got was ok but don't reel me in with gangs like the 'Sheets' and 'Nailers' if we not going to see that much of them. And the 'Plowboys' only had one plow... Ok, I did like the 'Gamblers', they were fun.

Having said all that though, the balance in 'The Domestics' is very definitely in favour of tense moments and violent death. There's just enough plot to keep it interesting but this is a film that makes it very clear what it's about and I can't complain because that was exactly what I was after last night and 'The Domestics' absolutely delivers on that score. It's brimming over with the stuff and comes complete with at least a couple of creative kills that made me squirm.

I'm more often than not the last person to watch a film so am always hesitant about recommending films just in case everyone is all, 'we've seen it already'. If you haven't seen 'The Domestics' though, it's not a period drama about servants in a country manor... It's an apocalyptic thriller full of violent death and meditation on the human condition, it's mostly about the violent death though ;o) Just like 'The Purge', but more so...