Scotty’s Horror Short Showcase: ‘In the Blood’

Written by Scott Edwards 

It is a question that is asked all of the time, how far would you go to help someone that you truly care about? While I am sure that everyone would do anything to keep a family member out of trouble any way they can, what would you be willing to do for your friends? The friends that I keep the closest, well, I consider them family these days, mainly because they are there when I need them and while it may only be a short list, they are the ones I care about the most. I would like to think that I would do anything to keep them out of trouble if needed, or just give them some helpful words when they are down, but I don’t know how far I would be willing to go if they per se, were going to become zombies or something like that.
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With their car breaking down in the middle of nowhere, Mark and John are running out of options when it comes to what to do next. As their friend Luke is in a bad way in the back of the car, the two men know that they cannot carry his additional weight when trying to escape. Checking in on their ailing friend, Mark pops his head in the back seat and asks how he is doing. Luke, holding his neck from an injury, knows that his time is short, and he will not be able to make the next leg of the trek that the men have planned and begs them to leave him, as he feels the infection growing inside of him.

Going back to John, Mark is upset to say that Luke will not be joining them, but John is not willing to leave the situation as is. Begging Mark to do the right thing and put Luke out of his misery, John is convinced that no one should end up with the infection taking over them at any point. Going to the trunk to get a baseball bat, Mark is ready to end his friend’s pain, but when looking in the backseat, he sees that Luke has gotten out. Looking around for a brief second, John and Mark see their friend filled with rage and Luke attacks them without slowing down. After getting back up from the rampage, Mark watches as John is torn to shreds by his friend and is able to end the assault of his ailing amigo, but now he must make the choice of putting another friend out of his misery before the masses of infected catch up with him.

This is a pretty cool horror short that you find out is a little bit zombie driven, even though they do not say it by name. With an infection taking over the world, the team had to stop for supplies, off screen, and obviously bit off more than they can chew and have a man down. I liked the hesitation that Mark had to show when it came to moving on without one of his friends, and the job John had to do to convince him that no one should be left to the infection. With an infected friend, a choice to make, a baseball bat, a gut tearing session, some deep black eyes, some head bashing and an overall cry for help, this short demonstrates that sometimes what must be done is not always easy, even if you know it is the right thing to do. Stay Scared.

See ‘In the Blood’ on Amazon Prime Video.

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