American Carnage

What this horror-comedy lacks in scares and laughs it more than makes up for with charismatic performances and thoughtful social commentary.

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“American Carnage” (available in select theaters and on VOD beginning Friday, July 15) is a horror-comedy that’s light on both scares and laughs, but has enough on its mind to make it worth a watch.

The opening credits ladle on a bunch of news footage concerning immigration (legal and otherwise) from the past five years or so. The clips lean hard on former President Donald Trump and Fox News, but also include current President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris in a less-than-flattering light.

JP (Dominican-American actor Jorge Lendeborg Jr., best known for “Love, Simon” and “Bumblebee”) is a good-natured young man who works flipping burgers at patriotic fast food joint Lady Liberty’s. His sister Lily (Yumarie Morales) is taking another track in life having been accepted to Columbia University. While celebrating Lily’s accomplishments, ICE busts in on the party and takes JP, Lily and their mother Nina (Ana Isabel Mena) into custody.

These apprehensions come at the behest of Governor Harper Finn (Brett Cullen, he was Thomas Wayne in Todd Phillips’ “Joker), who also happens to own Lady Liberty’s. Civil liberties attorney Lisa del Monaco (Paloma Bloyd) makes an offer to JT – if he volunteers at assisted living facility Owl Manor for three months he’ll be released from detention and allowed to live freely alongside his family as United States citizens afterwards.

Fellow captives joining JT at the convalescent home are Mexican-American political activist Camila (scream queen du jour Jenna Ortega, marking her fourth horror flick of the year here after “Scream,” “Studio 666” and “X”), the braggadocious, large lady-lovin’ Big Mac (Allen Maldonado of TBS’ “The Last O.G.”), hypochondriac conspiracy theorist Chris (Jorge Diaz, “Paranormal Activity: The Marked Ones”) and Argentine-American Micah (Bella Ortiz), who’s chided for being light-skinned enough to pass as white.

Owl Manor was founded by Eddie (Eric Dane, late of HBO’s “Euphoria”), who oversees the facility alongside his minions James (Indiana University graduate and Ponzi schemer Zach Avery, credited as Joseph Avery) and Cynthia (Catherine McCafferty). Turns out Chris has reasons to be suspicious as Owl Manor has terrifying ties to Lady Liberty’s, which recall a certain 1973 Charlton Heston vehicle.