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ALL JACKED UP & FULL OF WORMS (2022)

Directed and written by Alex Phillips.
Starring Phillip Andre Botello, Trevor Dawkins, Sammy Arechar, Betsey Brown, Eva Fellows, Noah Lepawsky, Mike Lopez, Carol Rhyu
Find out more about this film here!!

Two men with little direction in their lives find solace in a new kind of drug; worms. As their lives spiral out of control, they really don’t care…as long as they have earthworms to eat, snort, and digest.

I guess that’s pretty much the plot of ALL JACKED UP & FULL OF WORMS, a Chicago-filmed descent into madness. This is a film that is less of a narrative and more of an experiential, culminating in a climax filled with disgusting imagery, bizarre sounds, flashing lights, and people tripping their asses off. There are hints of a story as both of the leads; Phillip Andre Botello and Trevor Dawkins as Roscoe and Bennie, respectively, are both attempting to find happiness. Bennie wants desperately to be a father, while Roscoe simply seeks some kind of companionship though his girlfriend Samantha (Betsey Brown, who we last saw in an amazing performance in THE SCARY OF SIXTY-FIRST), who is more interested in experimenting with drugs and sex with other people. Roscoe and Bennie meet through happenstance and end up doing worms together, sharing an absolutely bonkers time and finding little else in life that compares to the feeling. Much of the film is spent following Roscoe, Bennie, and a few others as they trip through hallucinations and life causing real world catastrophes in their wake.

I can imagine seeing this film on the big screen and having it make a huge impact on people. Through image and sound, the film really does take the viewer into minds-paces and trippy-lands that truly do make you feel like you’re on the drugs the cast is taking. Personally, I love films with a little more storytelling depth, but though the narrative is all over the place, writer/director Alex Phillips creates two characters in Roscoe and Bennie that are relatable and lovable, even while doing this bizarre new drug. When Bennie and Roscoe begin to find their lives in danger during the climax, I was surprised how much I cared about their fates. That’s due to a combination of good acting and character work. While I haven’t seen these two actors before, Botello and Dawkins carry the film and make it all make some kind of sense.

I mean, this is a non-sensical movie. At least, I think it is. It doesn’t seem like it wants to communicate some deep meaning or theme. It’s just trippy stuff happening when a couple of people discover a new drug. If you’re a fan of absurdist horror outings like RUBBER, SAINT BERNARD, and the wild world of David Lynch, I’m pretty sure you’re going to be pretty jazzed about ALL JACKED UP AND FULL OF WORMS. I can’t say I understood it all, but I can say my eyes were thoroughly entertained by every depraved, disgusting, and disturbing minute of ALL JACKED UP AND FULL OF WORMS.

Check out the trailer here!!