Spare Parts is a nightmare for anyone who’s ever had car trouble on a dark, lonely road and fears things that go bump in the night. I spoke with director-executive producer Andrew Thomas Hunt about the film's June 1 release on VOD, digital, DVD and Blu-ray.

It’s been a long road since Hunt attached himself as director to Spare Parts after he heard a chance pitch at Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) about six years ago. 

Before Hunt got behind the camera, he and writers David Murdoch and Svet Rouskov tweaked the script, going from rock climbers to rock and roll punk rock band. This took the horror/action exploitation feminist revenge mash-up to a new level with a bar, a brawl and a battle royal. The post-apocalyptic setting is something any fan of the science fiction genre is familiar with and loves. Hunt mentioned that before he starts directing a new film, "I stay away from watching similar films so that I’m not consciously ripping off them" because as a fan, he’s seen those films (like all of us) but he went into Spare Parts wanting it to be his own. Which it is, since most of those films have never centered on a woman — let alone a group of them — as a heroine, not a damsel in distress waiting to be saved by a man. 

Spare Parts has interwoven characters and Hunt's direction allows them to have moments as individuals built into what they are fighting for. It’s a very women-centric action/horror film; the women characters weren’t centered toward getting or being saved by a man, but slowly coming to the realization that nobody would save them but themselves.

The movie is one with roles that the cast reveled in and went into with both feet. The religious-cult aspect of the film reminded me of a few of my favorite old horror films where the entire town was in on the horror, even those who didn’t participate. Part of that was the great casting of Julian Richings as The Emperor, who was malevolent but not sexual toward the heroines, instead looking at them as commodities who could "earn" a place if they performed properly. The interplay between Doctor (Erin Noble) and Sam (Jason Rouse) as they jockeyed over leadership and position dovetailed nicely with the ending that I didn’t expect. The relationship between the bandmates and the two sisters also added a depth to the film with rivalry, sibling jealousy, and relationships that can sometimes either motivate or leave you frozen; but when someone is coming at you with an ax, well you need to be in the moment at the arena! 

There is a reason the movie is called Spare Parts and it’s because appendages get replaced with weapons and Hunt mentioned how he worked with the stunt coordinator and FX to make them look realistic in post-production.

"A lot of it is movie magic with rubber props and whatnot," he said, commenting that the cast — who didn't get to wear the props until they got on set — still got bruised from the attacks.

"They gritted their teeth, took their bumps and bruises."

Hunt said he believes any of them would love to do it again.

Hunt shot Spare Parts for $1 million in 18 days, so it was tight to get the film completed. He then edited it himself.

He said he kept in mind the challenges of working not only with props and costume designers, but also set designers for scenes and how the final product would look. Once he completed editing it, COVID-19 kept it from theaters but Spare Parts was part of more than a dozen film festivals across the world. Still, Hunt and the cast weren’t able to attend because of the pandemic. Now that it’s finally about to be released, people will be able to enjoy Spare Parts themselves and Hunt is still looking forward to seeing the movie in the theater with friends, family and fans in the future. In the meantime, he has not rested, but kept busy with finishing his latest action film with an editor.

"You make films as a filmmaker that sure, you yourself would enjoy but you are really making it to share with others," he said.

From the Press Release:

Spare Parts is set in a godforsaken bar in the middle of nowhere, where an all-girl band — Ms. 45 — rips the stage apart with their punk spirit. But their performance impresses an enthusiastic fan who lures the girls into a trap, sedates them, and starts... customizing them. Slowly, they begin to gain consciousness and, in total shock, realize their arms have all been replaced with axes and chainsaws to fight gladiator-style in a junkyard arena owned by a sadistic "emperor," forcing them into the battle of their lives with one prize in mind — their freedom.

Directed by Andrew Thomas Hunt (Sweet Karma) and written by David Murdoch (The KNTV Show) and Svet Rouskov (Darken: Before the Dark), the film stars Julian Richings (Chaos Walking), Michelle Argyris (General Hospital), Emily Alatalo (Mother!), Kiriana Stanton (The Expanse) and Chelsea Muirhead (Slo Pitch). 

RLJE Films, a business unit of AMC Networks, will release Spare Parts on VOD, digital, DVD and Blu-ray on June 1. It will be available on DVD for an SRP of $27.97 and on Blu-ray for an SRP of $28.96.