Bunker (2022 film)

Lore & Background

During World War I, Lieutenant Turner commands a battalion including British soldiers Corporal Miller, Private Lewis, Captain Hall, and Corporal Walker. The young American soldier Private Baker struggles to adjust to the front. Private Segura, a medic, joins the group. While engaged in extended conflict with the opposing German camp, another British officer visits to assess morale; Turner refuses to admit any problems. When the German encampment goes dark, Turner orders an advance party to cross no man's land and take the outpost. During the advance, Baker is grabbed by a German soldier who begs for help; at Corporal Walker's urging, Baker stabs him to death. The men enter the German encampment past many mutilated bodies and discover a sealed door. They break it down and descend into a bunker, where they find a surviving German soldier affixed to a cross. Shelling causes a partial collapse, killing Private Gray. The group retreats from a gas attack, using gas masks stored in the bunker to survive.

Reader's Guide

Under Turner's orders, the battalion attempts to dig out, radio for rescue, and interrogate the German soldier. Segura learns the German's name is Kurt. Lewis radios what he assumes is an ally but cannot convey the gravity of the situation. Walker, injured, self-mutilates in a trance, then attacks Lewis and Baker; the battalion restrains him, but he vomits unidentified white liquid and viscera. Turner begins showing erratic behavior and a desire for control. Lewis displays religious delusions of grandeur under the radio's influence. Segura and Baker ally with Kurt to dig upward, finding all ration cans filled with the same strange viscera and white slime. Conflict escalates: Lewis attacks Turner with a grenade; Baker tries to replace the pin, but Lewis is killed and Baker's hand mutilated. Segura realizes the entity on the radio is not an ally and intends to keep them in the bunker. Kurt explains he is the 'sacrificial lamb' of the entity, called 'The Angel of War,' which feeds on despair and violence. Segura kills the corrupted Turner, escapes, and secures Baker's rescue. When he returns for Kurt, the entity emerges from Kurt's wound and draws Segura into a nightmarish vision. Segura sacrifices himself by detonating an explosion, sealing himself and the entity inside.

Did You Know?

• The film premiered October 8, 2022, at the Buffalo International Film Festival.
• On Rotten Tomatoes, 13% of 8 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 5.7/10.
• The cast includes Eddie Ramos as Pvt. Segura, Patrick Moltane as Lt. Turner, and Roger Clark as Cpl. Miller.
• The entity in the bunker is called 'The Angel of War' and uses Kurt as a physical vessel.