Some of the darkest horror stories are found in human nature. One horrible mistake can have a residual impact, twisting and infecting multiple lives for a lifetime. Award-winning indie filmmaker Joe Hollow takes a deep dive into this topic with raw intensity in his latest horror feature Flesh of the Unforgiven.

Opening with a BDSM dungeon-esque basement scene, we’re catapulted into a world of masochism as two devious individuals watch gore-filled movie clips while grungy metal music plays in the background. A masked humanoid beast known as the Death Dealer (Joe Hollow: Bloodstruck 2010) appears, announcing his presence in a presumably ancient language. This sets a dark, nefarious tone for what’s to come.

Transitioning with nods to Misery (James Caan, Kathy Bates, 1990) and Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining (1980), Jack (Hollow) and Sienna Russo (Debbie Rochon: The Toxic Avenger IV 2000) arrive at their remote, snow-covered cottage. It isn’t long before we’re gradually introduced to the troubled couple’s strained marriage. Enhanced by individual stressors, tension is thick. An author struggling with writer’s block, Jack is under pressure from his agent, who gives him an ultimatum: meet a three-day deadline for a two-page treatment of his next bestseller or be fired from the agency. Meanwhile, Sienna has plans to seek out her husband’s forgiveness through seduction. But the guilt from her atrocious infidelity seems to be eating away at her from the inside.

As the struggling couple reach their weakest point of desperation, they open themselves up to be prime pickings for the Death Dealer and his legion of demons. When Sienna becomes plagued with nightmares and Jack receives a VHS tape labeled ‘Violent Love,’ presumably from his agent, Flesh of the Unforgiven goes off the rails. Unraveling with a twist and a turn, the film becomes a psycho-sexual horror thriller with distinct nods to classics from the genre’s heyday.

Strong performances and carefully crafted scenes set a steady pacing that gradually pulls you in and holds you captive. The interwoven Death Dealer scenes of the demonic entity taking victims and claiming souls who failed to face their fears add to the buildup for when the ancient evil works his way into the lives of Jack and Sienna. While pressure mounts from all sides, you feel a clock is ticking while everyone is pleading for more time. Even a heartfelt montage that could have been cheesy to the highest degree was executed with finesse and hammered home the magnitude of the struggling relationship dynamic.

The only obvious flaw for this indie horror feature was some distracting CGI, which could have been resolved with fog machines and practical effects. This could’ve enhanced the eerie atmosphere keeping tension strong with unrelenting unease.

With a strong Hellraiser (Doug Bradley, 1987) vibe and an honorable homage scene to Wes Craven’s A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984), Hollow’s latest feature sprinkles in vulgarity for shock value, which almost earns it the title of trashy horror on the surface. However, it manages to become something more than a simple, sleazy gorefest. Felsh of the Unforgiven is a tormented story with surprising depth, emerging from the heart of darkness and encompassing the fallout of infidelity and betrayal, along with the scars left in its wake.

Flesh of the Unforgiven is streaming now on Amazon Prime Video.