Red Sands
Encyclopedia
Red Sands is a 2009 horror film
movie set in Afghanistan
in 2002. The film is directed by Alex Turner
, whose previous effort was Dead Birds
, in 2004.
A sandstorm comes up and the group catches an unnamed Afghan woman running in, seeking shelter. Unable to speak her language they are unable to understand what she is saying, though dubious to her arrival, they keep her in case there are more. The following days begin to mount tension in the group, the Staff Sergeant Howston is unable to reach any of their allies by radio, when Wilcox attempts, he hears a strange distress call stating that their sergeant has gone AWOL which Howston cannot hear. Paranoia begins to get the better of them when Howston receives word that they missed a car on the road which they cannot see, and their truck's ignition system is destroyed in one night. Meanwhile Howston and Wilcox are being haunted by gruesome images of people they had killed in the past. Wilcox goes missing, and the only witness seems to be team member Tino Hull who sees another member Jorge Wardell giving off a terrifying roar before him. That night, Wilcox's body is found slain and his eyes removed in a frozen expression of terror, and after a series of vivid and bizarre dreams Tino grabs another member Trevor Anderson and holds him at gunpoint as he accuses Jorge of killing Wilcox. Tino opens fire on Jorge and Davies is forced to retaliate, killing Tino. Howston orders them to take the bodies outside, and the next morning, the group is shocked to find that they are missing. Howston, slowly losing his grip on his sanity orders Keller and Anderson to keep guard outside while he himself watches to make sure nothing else goes missing. While they are gone, Davies attempts to rape the Afghan girl, and in a heated moment calls Howston a "fucking nigger", prompting a punch to be thrown. In anger, Davies attempts to attack Howston, and Howston finally slips, killing Davies and ordering Anderson and Keller to stash his body outside. Afterward, Howston goes missing, as does the girl as the remaining two attempt to make radio contact, Keller realizes that the voice he heard on the radio was that of Anderson when he makes the same radio call he had heard days prior. The pair plan to make a break for the rest of their group, but the girl appears briefly in the house and Keller goes to find her, meanwhile Anderson is confronted by the dead Wilcox who reveals himself to be a hideous creature. Before Anderson can react, however he is killed by a shot to the head from the stalking Howston. Howston prowls the farm looking for Keller and is shocked when he comes across the same creature that Anderson had seen. His defenses lowered after running, Keller manages to gain the upperhand and slit the Sergeant's throat, Keller then encounters the Afghan girl who turns out to be the deadly Djinn and manages to escape by throwing a grenade into the ammo-filled farmhouse. The following morning, Keller is grabbed by something from underneath the sand and pulled down, disappearing under the desert.
The first scene then recaps, and after the commanding officer tells him that he will be returned to the United States, he leaves. Keller then looks toward the camera, his eyes turning black revealing he is in fact the Djinn. As the screen pans out to the desert again it is revealed to the audience that Keller is dead, half buried in the sand, his eyes removed and his mouth open wide in terror. The screen then goes dark, and the credits roll.
as Spc. Jeff Keller
Leonard Roberts
as SSgt. Marcus Howston
Aldis Hodge
as Trevor Anderson
Callum Blue
as Gregory Wilcox
Brendan Miller as Pfc. Chard Davies
Theo Rossi
as Pfc. Tino Hull
Noel Gugliemi
as Pfc. Jorge Wardell (as Noel G)
Mercedes Masöhn as Arab Woman
J.K. Simmons as Lt. Col. Arson
Govinda Touzene as Afghan Child
Horror film
Horror films seek to elicit a negative emotional reaction from viewers by playing on the audience's most primal fears. They often feature scenes that startle the viewer through the means of macabre and the supernatural, thus frequently overlapping with the fantasy and science fiction genres...
movie set in Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
in 2002. The film is directed by Alex Turner
Alex Turner (director)
Alex Turner is an American film director, producer and screenwriter, best known for his work in the horror film genre, including the cult classic Dead Birds....
, whose previous effort was Dead Birds
Dead Birds (2004 film)
Dead Birds is a 2004 American horror film directed by Alex Turner.-Synopsis:A handful of thieves discover that they have more to worry about than the law in this independent horror story, set during the American Civil War.-Plot:...
, in 2004.
Plot
The movie opens with a debriefing of Jeff Keller, who mysteriously survived the slaughter of his troops during a mission; the facts gathered they had been ambushed by Al Qaeda militants who killed them all, leaving Wilcox for dead. The story unfolds two weeks prior when the crew gets their mission and is set out to an isolated farmhouse where a family had been slaughtered days before. Their mission is to monitor a road as a sting to catch militants using it to transfer supplies. However, after an unintended stop at a mysterious shrine, the group interpreter Wilcox believes that it was a shrine to a Djinn, a powerful deity made from a smokeless flame, which in mythology matched the legend of a genie. A bored member of their group, Chard Davies, fires a few rounds at a stone idol, causing it to shatter, but with little more in store for them, they return to their caravan and go to the farmhouse. While there a series of bizarre events unfold.A sandstorm comes up and the group catches an unnamed Afghan woman running in, seeking shelter. Unable to speak her language they are unable to understand what she is saying, though dubious to her arrival, they keep her in case there are more. The following days begin to mount tension in the group, the Staff Sergeant Howston is unable to reach any of their allies by radio, when Wilcox attempts, he hears a strange distress call stating that their sergeant has gone AWOL which Howston cannot hear. Paranoia begins to get the better of them when Howston receives word that they missed a car on the road which they cannot see, and their truck's ignition system is destroyed in one night. Meanwhile Howston and Wilcox are being haunted by gruesome images of people they had killed in the past. Wilcox goes missing, and the only witness seems to be team member Tino Hull who sees another member Jorge Wardell giving off a terrifying roar before him. That night, Wilcox's body is found slain and his eyes removed in a frozen expression of terror, and after a series of vivid and bizarre dreams Tino grabs another member Trevor Anderson and holds him at gunpoint as he accuses Jorge of killing Wilcox. Tino opens fire on Jorge and Davies is forced to retaliate, killing Tino. Howston orders them to take the bodies outside, and the next morning, the group is shocked to find that they are missing. Howston, slowly losing his grip on his sanity orders Keller and Anderson to keep guard outside while he himself watches to make sure nothing else goes missing. While they are gone, Davies attempts to rape the Afghan girl, and in a heated moment calls Howston a "fucking nigger", prompting a punch to be thrown. In anger, Davies attempts to attack Howston, and Howston finally slips, killing Davies and ordering Anderson and Keller to stash his body outside. Afterward, Howston goes missing, as does the girl as the remaining two attempt to make radio contact, Keller realizes that the voice he heard on the radio was that of Anderson when he makes the same radio call he had heard days prior. The pair plan to make a break for the rest of their group, but the girl appears briefly in the house and Keller goes to find her, meanwhile Anderson is confronted by the dead Wilcox who reveals himself to be a hideous creature. Before Anderson can react, however he is killed by a shot to the head from the stalking Howston. Howston prowls the farm looking for Keller and is shocked when he comes across the same creature that Anderson had seen. His defenses lowered after running, Keller manages to gain the upperhand and slit the Sergeant's throat, Keller then encounters the Afghan girl who turns out to be the deadly Djinn and manages to escape by throwing a grenade into the ammo-filled farmhouse. The following morning, Keller is grabbed by something from underneath the sand and pulled down, disappearing under the desert.
The first scene then recaps, and after the commanding officer tells him that he will be returned to the United States, he leaves. Keller then looks toward the camera, his eyes turning black revealing he is in fact the Djinn. As the screen pans out to the desert again it is revealed to the audience that Keller is dead, half buried in the sand, his eyes removed and his mouth open wide in terror. The screen then goes dark, and the credits roll.
Cast
Shane WestShane West
Shane West is an American actor, musician and songwriter. West is best known for portraying Eli Sammler in Once and Again, Landon Carter with Mandy Moore in A Walk to Remember, Darby Crash in What We Do Is Secret, and Dr...
as Spc. Jeff Keller
Leonard Roberts
Leonard Roberts
-Early life:Leonard Roberts was born on November 17, 1972, in St. Louis, Missouri. In 1995, Roberts graduated from DePaul University Theater School with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in acting.-Career:...
as SSgt. Marcus Howston
Aldis Hodge
Aldis Hodge
Aldis Hodge is an American actor currently starring as Alec Hardison on the TNT series Leverage.-Life and career:Aldis Alexander Basil Hodge was born in Onslow County, North Carolina on September 20, 1986. While both of his parents served in the U.S...
as Trevor Anderson
Callum Blue
Callum Blue
Daniel James Callum Blue , better known as Callum Blue, is an English film and television actor, best known for his roles on the Showtime series The Tudors and Dead Like Me as well as for his role as Zod in the American television series Smallville and British...
as Gregory Wilcox
Brendan Miller as Pfc. Chard Davies
Theo Rossi
Theo Rossi
Theo Rossi is an American actor, best known for his role on the FX series Sons of Anarchy as Juan Carlos "Juice" Ortiz....
as Pfc. Tino Hull
Noel Gugliemi
Noel Gugliemi
Noel Gugliemi is an American actor.He was born in Santa Monica, California, to an Italian-American father and a Mexican-American mother. Gugliemi voiced the character of Cortez in the video game 187 Ride or Die. He is most noted for portraying a stereotypical southern Californian Latino gang member...
as Pfc. Jorge Wardell (as Noel G)
Mercedes Masöhn as Arab Woman
J.K. Simmons as Lt. Col. Arson
Govinda Touzene as Afghan Child