By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 3.5 cats
Director: Joel Potrykus
Starring: Joel Potrykus | Joshua Burge | Melissa Blanchard | Scott Ayotte | Solo Potrykus
Year: 2025
Running time: 85
IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt28226888
Jeff says: “As it opens, VULCANIZADORA seems like it could end up as an OLD JOY-ish bromance. Two friends bicker, cajole, prank each other, sometimes cryptically mention their lives and their friendship as they tramp through the Michigan woods, seriously unprepared for a campout. The script takes a full two acts to reveal and execute the excursion’s purpose. Besides what we glean from their interactions, we don’t get a lot of back story; the film’s title, obliquely (vulcanization is the process by which rubber tree sap is turned into tires), a shot behind the opening credits of a factory on fire, and a mention by one of the characters that the other one burned down a tire factory. The third act is one of penance, not redemption. This isn’t a bloody movie, which renders its single act of violence shocking. The movie seems to have been shot on a bargain basement budget, but it looks pretty good. 3.5 cats.”