When justice fails, the dead rise to make things right.
Savaged (2013) is a brutal, supernatural revenge thriller that mixes grindhouse horror with Native American mysticism in an unapologetically raw tale of retribution. Directed by Michael S. Ojeda, the film tells the story of Zoe, a young deaf woman who becomes the victim of an unspeakable crime — only to return from death transformed, empowered, and hellbent on vengeance.
After witnessing a violent crime in the desert, Zoe is abducted by a vicious gang of men with ties to a local sheriff. She's tortured and left for dead, her body desecrated and abandoned. But death is not the end for Zoe. Through a sacred ritual performed by a Native shaman, her soul is bound with that of a long-dead Apache warrior seeking justice of his own. What returns is no longer human — but something more relentless, more wrathful, and fueled by the pain of two souls crying out for vengeance.
What follows is a gruesome, bloody rampage as Zoe hunts down her killers one by one, armed with blades, bows, and the spirit of righteous fury. The film leans heavily into its exploitation roots, delivering graphic violence, stylized revenge sequences, and an unflinching portrayal of both human cruelty and supernatural reckoning.
Despite its low budget, Savaged impresses with inventive cinematography, a raw central performance by Amanda Adrienne, and a story that boldly reclaims agency for a voiceless victim. The fusion of rape-revenge genre tropes with spiritual resurrection gives the film a distinct identity — one that is both empowering and deeply disturbing.
Savaged isn’t just about revenge — it’s about transformation, and how pain, when pushed beyond the grave, can awaken something terrifying.
