The Kindred

A rural house on the coast of SoCal and the genetic mutations thereof

A doctor in Los Angeles (David Allen Brooks) is instructed by his dying mother, a revolutionary geneticist, to destroy her work at the family homestead. So, he leads a team up there, but their stay is interrupted by some… thing.

"The Kindred" (1987) is similar in spirit to “The Boogens” from six years prior and the soon-to-come “Slugs.” It mixes HP Lovecraft with horror bits from “Halloween,” “Alien” and “Jaws.” For instance, there’s an aged doctor in the periphery who’s reminiscent of Donald Pleasence’s Dr. Loomis, just less noble (Rod Steiger). It’s okay, but seems off somehow and therefore is the least of these, which explains its obscurity.

The female cast is decent with Talia Balsam (Sharon), Amanda Pays (Melissa) and Julia Montgomery (Cindy), but the director evidently didn’t know how to shoot women.

While it won’t strike you at first, the movie ends up being a cabin-in-the-woods flick. It delivers the goods just enough if you’re in the mood for such a film but, like I said, it’s not exactly great or even really good. It needed another rewrite to flush out more entertainment.

It runs 1 hour, 33 minutes, and was shot at Laird International Studio in Culver City, but also nearby Los Angeles (the hospital) and Mentryville (Amanda’s house), which is an hour’s drive northwest of the city, just west of Santa Clarita.

GRADE: C