As one may imagine, a state as wild and riddled with outlaws as Texas has given birth to more than a few twisted tales of the strange. Miles and miles of sparsely populated plains covered in the gnarled corpses of thorn covered mesquite, prickly pear cactus and dry gray tumbleweed has lent itself well to the cultivation of myths and legends born of superstition and moonshine. No matter how we attempt to civilize the massive state, its restless spirits simply will not be tamed and the rough, iron-willed people who inhabit its small towns have become the story-keepers, passing down the terrifying myths from one generation to the next. Some stories are simply wives tales, old yarns spun to keep the children close to home and the men from getting too rowdy on a Saturday night before Sunday mass arrives. But others hold far more credibility, with eyewitness accounts and chilling documentation that would make a believer out of the most stalwart skeptics.

Such is the tale of THE WILD MAN OF NAVIDAD, a legend of a mysterious man-beast creature that roamed the Navidad river countryside, holding a small town hostage with fear for decades. Based on the recently acquired journals of Texan Dale S. Rogers, The Wild Man of the Navidad weaves a frightening depiction of the events surrounding the final murders inflicted by the "wild man". Told from the eyes of Dale S. Rogers (played by Justin Meeks), set in the tiny Texas town of Sublime, the story unfolds with a 70's-styled Technicolor stained darkness that leaves the feel of grit between your teeth and the sting of moonshine on the back of your throat. Greeks Productions and writer of the original 1974 Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Kim Henkel, along with co-writer/director team, Duane Graves and Justin Meeks, have done a superb job of cultivating the Texas myth, infusing the legend of a primal creature set upon revenge after its lands are invaded by hunters with fresh blood, making the Texas wilds seem an even more inhospitable place. Indeed, if I were a hunter, I would think twice before wandering off alone. Who knows exactly who is hunting whom when all is said and done?

Texas has been the home to a slew of horror films over the decades for a variety of reasons, but especially for the hollow sense of isolation one feels out in the far reaches away from the cities where there is literally nothing around for miles and miles in any direction. The small towns that still cling to survival out there are filled with hardened characters tough as the leather saddles they still ride. There is absolutely no replacement for these genuine souls and the creators of THE WILD MAN OF THE NAVIDAD saw this as a key element they had to incorporate into their movie in order to gather credibility to the legend behind it. A large quantity of the actors in this film are untrained "real" people and their authenticity lends to the movie a rough, sweat-stained brilliance that is rare in this day and age where people rely too heavily upon special effects and mass-produced white-bread talent to fill the gaps. There is simply no amount of method acting or training that can create these characters. They are born of blood, sweat and rattlesnake venom and I am thrilled to see that the creators of this movie were wise enough to see that as well. This gives me great hope that the future projects produced by Greek Productions will be equally cult-worthy. Their keen sense of character definition, combined with an excellent script writing ability and brilliantly simple camera and scene direction, makes Greek Productions one of the most intriguing upcoming film companies I have crossed paths with in some time. If you are a fan of THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE then you will definitely be a fan of THE WILD MAN OF THE NAVIDAD. It is definitely one indie film you cannot miss!

More information about this film can be found on their official site at www.wildmanofthenavidad.com, a site filled with detailed information about the lore surrounding this myth as well as information on the film itself and future screenings, or on MySpace at www.myspace.com/wildmanofthenavidad.

Check out the trailer on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XX79tuMtYJk