Providing a human side to a serial killer is always a risky endeavor. But that’s what transpires in The Deserving, a new horror film with a mute serial killer at its center as he wrestles with his own ghosts, drowning beneath the weight of so many bodies he’s collecting.
And they are indeed pissed off.
As the film opens, we witness Karter (Venkat Sai Gunda) brutally attack a client named Hanna (Mariam Lomsadze), who came to his apartment for headshots. Karter is a photographer and he is well-known, but there’s a deep dark secret he keeps hidden from everyone else: he’s a serial killer.
And now, unable to deal with what he does, he’s ready to take his own life. We are not tasked to feel sympathy for the brutality he does. That’s not the task here. What we do get is an idea that violence begets violence as another client arrives and interrupts his attempt to kill himself and offers up a psychological game of cat-and-mouse which he finds himself caught in.
Let the haunting begin!
The Deserving is, at once, a horror film which takes its inspiration from the likes of Carnival of Souls, yet reveals itself to be as interested in the monsters which haunt this mute serial killer as it is in establishing ways for him to communicate his misery. It’s a strong effort from Sai Gunda as audiences get to peek inside the mindset of a mute who is responsible for a whole lot of horror.
Be warned: this is a single location horror film. It’s also a low budget shoot and, as we have a limited number of cast members involved, which includes that deseperate walk-in client who interrupts Karter’s suicide attempt, the film stays centered on Karter and that which haunts him so - considering these tight limitations - the film might not be for all audiences, especially if you like your ghost stories a bit more expansive. 
But it does bring in a supernatural element which needs to be seen and appreciated thanks to its design and effects.
The film has already amassed a number of accolades, having won over fifteen awards including Best Feature at Athens IFF, Best Horror at Hallucinea FF, and awards at Humro Cinema, Portugal Indie Film Festival, and Rome Indie Film Fest. The Deserving is an interesting take on the horror genre; one which pays off thanks to the in medias res structure (which reveals the how and the why) which writer/director S.S. Arora, making his feature film debut, provides its audience with.
Entertainment Squad is delighted to announce that upcoming horror, The Deserving, will be released worldwide on Digital Download on October 1st under its genre label, The Horror Collective.
MPAA Rating: Unrated.
Runtime:
Director: Koka Singh Arora
Writer: Koka Singh Arora
Cast: Venkat Sai Gunda; Simone Stadler; Kelsey Stalter
Genre: Horror
Tagline: From the Curious Mind of S.S. Arora
Memorable Movie Quote: "I need a new headshot for my portfolio"
Distributor: Walt Disney Studio Motion Pictures
Official Site: Entertainment Squad
Release Date: October 1, 2024
DVD/Blu-ray Release Date:
Synopsis: Story centers around a depressed mute serial killer tormented in his house by the ghost of his victims. On the morning he's set to kill himself he's visited by a sudden walk-in client in need of a photo shoot.
