Pyotr465 was generating buzz even before it was finished, due to director Blake Mawson attempting to explore the increasingly dangeous homophobia in Russia while giving things a horror movie twist. Now the short film has been released online for us all to take a look.
When we saw the film at the Iris Prize Festival in 2016 we said, ‘Pyotr495 is set in modern-day Russia, where a young man heads out for a hook-up with a guy he’s met on a dating app. However, once there he discovers the guy and his friends actually intend to punish and torture him for being gay – which in their minds also makes him a pedophile. They may have bitten off more than they can chew though when something monstrous emerges.
‘It’s an interesting idea and deftly brings a touch of supernatural horror into a gay-themed short. The film also consciously engages with the situation in Russia, where the gay propaganda laws have allowed homophobes to feel they have impunity to kidnap and torture gay men (and in some cases worse). Horror fans will definitely appreciate where the short goes, which starts out feeling like a drama before taking a bloody, revenge fantasy turn.’
An unusual gay themed short film which meshes together social commentary with the visceral horror/blood-and-gore genres. Though filmed in Canada it is in Russian with hardcoded English subtitles.
