SMP Reviews
 Bokshi ©Lorien_Motion_Pictures One of the things I enjoy about international horror films is the different approach and perspective of the stories as compared to western horror. Many are influenced by religious stories or mythology, yet still work in modern day cultural topics. A prime example is the new fantasy horror film called Bokshi, which premiered at the International Film Festival Rotterdam this week. Bokshi is a story about a teen named Anhita who is dealing with PTSD after suffering a brutal event that included the disappearance of her mother. To make matters worse, she is continually bullied for being the “weird one” and is haunted by terrible dreams. After transferring to a boarding school, Anhita meets Shalini, her history teacher, who seems to understand Anhita and becomes her ally. When on a school field trip to a prehistoric site, Anhita not only confronts her past but also realizes her true horrific destiny.  Bokshi ©Lorien_Motion_Pictures Bokshi is a dark and emotional roller coaster ride with an ending you will not be prepared for. Director Bharga Saiki weaves together an engrossing story with the threads of coming of age, trauma, female liberation, human mistreatment of the Earth, mythology and horror. Saiki builds up a creepy atmosphere around Anhita in such a way where a flickering light can make the hairs on the back of your neck stand up. I was so into the story that the extensive runtime just flew by. There are certain points where stylized and disturbing animation is skillfully used to present the mythology. All of these elements are used to effectively pull Anhita, and the audience, further into the darkness.  Bokshi ©Lorien_Motion_Pictures When we first meet Anhita, she is a shy, troubled teen who has an embarrassing condition due to her trauma. She has a dad who tries to be sympathetic and a grandmother who is far less understanding. Anhita is played by Prasanna Bisht. She immediately makes you feel for her character with her performance. She plays this part perfectly. It is also interesting to see how she changes over the course of the film. It is not an immediate change but Bisht does subtle movements or changes with her hair and demeanor to help to convey the changes she is going through. My other favorite performance is from Mansi Multani who plays the teacher Shalini. Shalini is the exact opposite of Anhita. She is a strong, confident and at times a scary character. Multani and Bisht make you feel the strong bond between these two characters. I loved the interaction between them as Shalini helps Anhita gain confidence, deal with her trauma and teach her about her true self. Dagi Ngomdir is Rebecca, a student who befriends Anhita. There is an attraction between the two that is briefly explored. There is also an interesting turn they take with Rebecca that was unexpected but refreshing.  Bokshi ©Lorien_Motion_Pictures When a story is named Bokshi, meaning “witch” in the Nepali language, you know there will be magic involved and you get plenty of it. I loved how it is portrayed here. Rather than using a lot of visual CGI effects, practical effects are used in combination with sharp editing and excellent performances. Like Anhita, we are pulled into this world of magic, gradually, allowing time to understand what is happening before hitting us with a bigger demonstration. By the last act you are full on board with whatever you witness. In the last fifteen minutes, everything gets dialed up to eleven. A number of scenes made me exclaim “Oh Damn!”. It is an excellent payoff for the journey.
Bokshi is not only an excellently crafted horror tale but its themes are relevant to all cultures around the world. It is a prime example of how horror can be a very effective tool to get your message across. If you are a fan of films like The Witch and Susperia, I think you will enjoy Bokshi. I think it will be in my top five horror films of 2025 by the end of the year.
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 The subject of the paranormal, being able see ghosts, and similar encounters from the beyond tend to be dismissed as hoaxes or mental illness. A new documentary called It’s Coming may help change that stigma. Director Shannon Alexander brings the story of Ashley Roland-White, a day-trader and mom of five who has been haunted by malevolent spirits since she was eleven. Fear of being considered unstable or accused of making things up has kept Ashley from talking to anyone except her closest family members about the subject. When her children started talking about seeing spirits, Ashley decided to make her supernatural experiences public in the hopes of ridding the spirits from her life and protecting her children.  In the world of found footage and reality TV, it would be easy to say this documentary is fictional. Alexander manages to present this story through a sympathetic and understanding lens. Through interviews with Ashely and her children, we get a sense of authenticity from the family who genuinely believe they are haunted. Further solidifying that there is something truly supernatural going on with the family, there are moments during filming that are unexplained. A boom mic lunging at Ashley, odd behaviors of the electronics the filmmakers are using, and even the appearance of something on a piece of detection equipment. The creepiness of the situation really comes through when the children are interviewed. Javier is the seven year old who seems to have the strongest connection to the main entity. His matter of fact descriptions of the existence of “Mr. Kitty” when he talks about it feels like more than just a kid's imagination. All of the children mention their experiences with honesty. Everyone believes what they are seeing.  A number of expert mediums are brought in during the investigation to try and help the family. These people are also presented with seriousness. Whether it is a medium who tries to do a cleansing but appears to have failed to a psychic who helps Ashley communicate with the spirits to the Christian couple who bring in equipment to detect the entities. The same couple also try to help cleanse the home through the power of faith. No hidden agenda or statement about the legitimacy is made about any of these individuals. The audience are just observers of this sliver of his family’s life.  It’s Coming is not necessarily trying to change the audience’s mind that the paranormal exists so much as show how much this family believes in it. How this belief in the haunting has continued to affect their personal lives and what they do to still try to lead normal lives. There is a constant creepy atmosphere given to everything thanks to the sharp editing that keeps the story compelling. If you are into the paranormal or looking for a decent horror themed documentary, you will want to check out It’s Coming.
It’s Coming comes to digital in the US November 8, 2024 and everywhere November 11, 2024.  ©2024 Epic Pictures Group A home is supposed to be a place where you feel safe and secure. But what if someone breaks into your home and decides to live there without you knowing? This is the subject of a new film from Director Jill Gevargizian. Ghost Game is about Laura who, along with a partner, participates in an internet challenge called Ghost Game. The challenge requires you to break into someone’s home and live inside the home, undetected by its current occupants for as long as possible. After Laura’s boyfriend, Vin, discovers what Laura has been doing, she reluctantly agrees to take him along on her next challenge attempt. The two break into a famous haunted manor called Halton House, where a new family has just moved in. After the couple successfully enter the house, they realize they may not be the only ones haunting the halls. While staying there, they begin to uncover the dark secrets held within the walls of the house as the family slowly unravels into chaos. When things turn deadly and the couple find themselves no longer playing a game but fighting for their lives.  ©2024 Epic Pictures Group Ghost Game is a dark, unnerving, multilayered film that explores the extremes that people will go to for thrills and notoriety. The idea of someone breaking into your home as part of an internet prank is not out of the realm of possibility in today's culture, making it an effective scare tool. When we are first introduced to Laura, we see her in the middle of a Ghost Game which doesn’t leave a great impression of her with the audience or her boyfriend Vin when he discovers what she has been doing. Add in Laura’s shady partner and you have a tension filled dynamic that adds an interesting layer to a straight-forward premise. Another layer to the story is the family who has moved into the house. They have their own history of challenges. The husband is a struggling author who has a troubled past and who seems to have trouble dealing with the autistic daughter of his wife. We witness the family unraveling through the eyes of our home invaders. Vin is the most sympathetic to the family, while Laura and her partner decide it is none of their business. There is one more layer which involves a surprise twist which I don’t want to spoil.  ©2024 Epic Pictures Group The cast of Ghost Game brings their A-game. Kia Dorsey’s Laura is a character that is torn between keeping the man she cares for and giving into the thrill of the game. There is a scene early on where she gets very upset and accuses Vin of spying on her when he comes across the video of her playing the Ghost Game. It is hard to tell if she is actually upset that Vin had found the video or if reality sets in at that moment about how wrong it is to play the game. Dorsey’s performance helps sell this inner conflict. Vaen Haidar plays Vin and has a great connection with Dorsey. Laura and Vin feel like a real couple. You can also feel Vin’s consistent reluctance to playing the game but also wanting to be with Laura. Then there is Sam Lukowski’s character. This is a creepy guy who enjoys sharing the experience of the Ghost Game with Laura. I appreciated that there did not seem to be a romantic element to their relationship but more of a partners-in-crime aspect. Michael C Williams as the father of the family was one of the scarier characters. You will not like this guy. Emily Bennett makes the most of her screen time and is a very sympathetic character. She had great chemistry with Vienna Maas who puts in a great performance as her daughter.  ©2024 Epic Pictures Group While I enjoyed Ghost Game it did feel like it was missing a bit of the edge that was in The Stylist, Jill Gevargizian’s first feature. She did not write the script for Ghost Game so that may have been part of it. I think this is another solid feature from Gervargizian, demonstrating that she is a director to keep your eye on. You should also keep your eye out for Ghost Game which will get a limited theatrical run beginning October 18, 2024 and on October 22, 2024 the film will be available to rent or purchase on video-on-demand (VOD). It is a well crafted thriller that has a few surprises and enough spooky season fun to make it worth a watch.
The Shade, directed by Tyler Chipman, tells the story of a twenty-year-old who is finding it hard to keep his family together after the traumatic death of his father. Ryan juggles trying to have a normal social life while taking care of his little brother when his mother is working. Ryan also suffers from anxiety which he fights to keep in check. When his older brother Jason comes home for a surprise visit mid semester, things get more complicated. Jason seems to be in a very dark place mentally. While Ryan tries to understand what is going on with Jason, he starts seeing a grotesque figure in the shadows that appears to be stalking him. Ryan soon finds himself trying to protect his younger brother from this creature - but is the creature real or is there something deeper and scarier going on?  The Shade is an unnerving slow burn horror film that doesn’t go for the immediate scares. It is more atmospheric in its horror, building the tension like a slow descent into madness. The figure Ryan sees stays in the shadows or dimly lit hallways for most part, there only a couple of moments where we see it in all its grotesque glory, and it is disturbing. The creature is there for more than just shock value, it is a representation of the mental illness that runs in the family. When Jason arrives at home, depression seems to have already overtaken him. While it is not directly addressed, you get the idea that he has already been having visions of this creature. Then Ryan starts to see the creature and we can see his behavior start to change, though he seems to be fighting it better than his older brother. His youngest brother James seems to be the one least affected by everything that is going on. It was interesting to see these three different stages. All of them are conveyed effectively by the performance of our lead.  Chris Galust is fantastic as Ryan. You feel his struggles as he tries to juggle all the different aspects of being a twenty-something while also managing the household. His anxiety attacks were not over acted and the various emotions he goes through felt authentic. Jason is played by Dylan McTee who also puts in a very grounded performance. You can tell he is fighting his inner feelings of depression and grief. There is something going on underneath the surface that he is reluctant to tell anyone about. Instead, it begins to overtake him. Sam Duncan does a great job as James. He seemed like a normal kid who cares for his older brothers and has a hard time understanding what is going on with them. The dynamic between these three made it seem like they were true brothers. Their relationship is the real heart of the story.  There are not a lot of special effects in The Shade, but the effects used are very effective. I loved the makeup on the creature. It is a very shocking image when we get the full reveal. The lightning used added to the characters overall scariness and it will definitely make your skin crawl. There are a number of other mysterious figures that show up that look like dark priests. The design of their look made them very foreboding. They show up sparingly, which I appreciated.
Mental Illness is not something new to horror. The Shade manages to present it in a unique way.There were a few surprises and its final image scene is definitely one I won’t forget anytime soon. While it leans a little more into the drama aspect than the horror, there are still plenty of hair raising moments. Add to that a solid, talented cast, and I think it is worth a watch.  Melissa O. Bowen - Unnatural ©2023 Little Monster Entertainment Religion and the supernatural collide in a new horror western from filmmaker Whit Whitman called Unnatural. Dan Remington is a hunter of monsters. He was tasked with this purpose by God as penance for his past transgressions. While on the trail of a werewolf, he ends up crossing paths with his two grandkids. Due to an unfortunate loss, the two children end up tagging along with their estranged grandfather. The pair soon find themselves helping Remington with his mission as he is called to free a town from the control of a vampire sheriff. Unnatural is a creative and entertaining period horror story that has vampires, werewolves, ghosts, gunfighters, and a lot of heart. Writers Don Perrin and Whitman give us a character driven screenplay that focuses more on the humans than the fantastic. There is not a large amount of action or blood for that matter which is an interesting choice given the subject. They explore family dynamics and the effect of losing a loved one has on that. Remington is literally haunted by the love of his life, as well as other ghosts, but can’t see them. His granddaughter can see ghosts but can’t hear them. It is only together that they can truly be with their wife/grandmother. This alludes to the idea that only when the family stays together can they honor the memory of lost family members. Then there is the town being controlled by a sheriff Vampire. As we meet them we get the perspective of what people are willing to sacrifice in order to stay “safe”. The vampire seems to get more out of the deal than the townsfolk, resembling an abusive relationship. Then there is the subject of redemption, handled through our main character Remington.  Al Snow - Unnatural © 2023 Little Monster Entertainment Al Snow puts in one of his best performances as the seasoned gunslinger turned monster hunter. He plays this character with sincerity and subtly. You can feel the weight he is carrying of his sins and also his resolve in his mission from God. He is also a humble man who just wants to go about his work. He is not afraid to knock someone’s teeth out to accomplish that task though. The strongest part of his performance is with his interaction with the kids. His handling of their needs and banter felt very natural. I loved this character and hope to see more of him. Remington’s grandkids are played by Charlee Carmicle and Samuel Wilson. They were an interesting pair. Carmicle’s Jess is a girl strong in her convictions and her abilities to see ghosts. She is the more spiritual of the pair. Samuel Wilson’s Junior is a boy who is very good at fixing almost anything. He is more of the scientific one and they balance each other nicely. Then there is our vampire sheriff played by John Wells. He was the perfect opposite to Remington. Wells gives his Sherriff Roddy Hawkin the suave, wickedly arrogant personality you would expect from a vampire. He brought a great energy to his scenes.  Charlee Carmicle - Unnatural © 2023 Little Monster Entertainment The costuming and production design are good enough to sell the idea this is the old west. The town looked the part, though it was a little too clean and polished. I would have liked to see a little more mud and dirt on things but when you are working on a limited budget you can only do so much. There were also a few scenes where the CGI blood was very obvious. I wish they had chosen not to have any blood at all like the old westerns. The cinematography was well done. I appreciate the restraint in the use of drone shots. It made the few overhead drone shots they had more effective. Dialogue in the film felt period-appropriate. I did have to chuckle though, every time Remington mentioned he was on a “mission from God”, but you can blame The Blues Brothers for that. With the interesting blend of the supernatural, faith, and creature-feature, there is something here for everyone. I was not sure what to expect going into the film. When the credits rolled I did not feel my time was wasted and I wanted to see more of Dan Remington in action. If you enjoy western horror films then I think you will get a kick out of Unnatural.  © Little Monster Entertainment  An increasing number of faith-based films have come onto the scene over the past ten years. While they started out being debate films filled with exposition of opposing views and retelling of biblical stories, they have since branched out into the horror and action genres. One recent film fits into the later category; Angels Fallen: Warriors of Peace from Director Ali Zamani which is a follow up to Angels Fallen. Gabriel, a soldier who was wounded in combat, is called by a higher power to help save the world from being overrun by an army of demons led by the archangel Michael. Gabriel assembles his old team for the mission but realizes they cannot do it alone. They soon join up with a group of warriors who are experienced in demonic warfare. It will take everyone’s strength and faith to save the world.  Angels Fallen: Warriors of Peace is a melodramatic and cheesy action film with a campy spirit that is rooted in faith. It is a mixed bag of good and bad. I enjoyed the world-building in the story, from the rules the Warriors of Peace follow to the existence of demons to the production design. All of it was a fun world to experience. I particularly enjoyed the “Q” scene where our heroes are called to an armory full of demon fighting weapons which is run by Deborah, well played by Denise Richards. Richards looked like she was having fun and even got a chance to spill some demonic blood. I also enjoyed Balthazar, played by Cuba Gooding Jr., taking over the role played by Michael Madsen in the previous film. He gets to flex his muscles a bit in a flashback scene fighting demons on a really cool stone bridge. The action scenes are well choreographed and involved. Both the fight scenes in the strip club and a motorcycle chase had decent stunts and were well directed. Even the fight with the CGI demons was not half bad. Then there was the unexpected blood and nudity that made it a bit edgier than many other films of this type.  All of these positive elements were not enough to cover up the roughest aspect of Angels Fallen: Warriors of Peace: the screenplay. It really could have used more work. The dialog was uninspired and very on the nose. The majority of the characters were one note with very little distinguishing one from the other. This impacted the performances of the cast which ranged from decent to ok. Josh Burdett plays Gabriel with the weight needed for the character. You can feel his struggle with his faith, beliefs, and see him being a leader to his squad. Michael is played by Michael Teh and his performance is the best, possibly because he has some of the better dialog. Teh plays the heavy with the right balance of confidence and darkness. The rest of the cast do well enough with the screen time they have, but they all could have used better written characters and dialog. The CGI looked far better than many indie films with the same budget but when it was bad, it was very noticeable. The music could have also been better, but when working on smaller budgets score usually takes a back seat.  Angels Fallen: Warriors of Peace is one of the better faith-based films to come out in recent years. It’s mature edge helps make it more accessible to adults and it never gets too saccharine. The preachiness is still there but it at least wears its beliefs on its sleeve and isn’t trying to convert its audience. The production value is high, and it had a bit of a Buffy The Vampire Slayer vibe to it. Overall I was more entertained than I thought I would be. I think if you enjoy this genre of film, you should seek it out.
 A new independent neo-noir murder mystery is out that combines classic mystery elements with social commentary. King Saud is about two detectives who have to put their differences aside to solve the murder of a Saudi prince who was killed along with a high-priced sex worker. The two are pressured to solve the case before it becomes a national incident. As they draw closer to the answers, dark secrets about the department begin to surface, as well feelings between the two detectives. The question is, are they just playing each other to uncover secrets? Is there more to the murder than what it seems? Is there a chance for redemption among any of the characters?  Director and writer Mark Toma brings us an interesting murder mystery that has more layers than expected. Putting the story on an international scale raises the stakes and is a great additional knot for the detectives to unravel. There is not a lot of action going on as this is a character-driven piece. A lot of scenes are conversations that range from police corruption to gender inequality to class warfare to name just a few topics. Outside of one or two scenes, it doesn’t get preachy, and the conversations are woven into the web of standard murder mystery inquiries. The conversations are kept interesting thanks to the performances of the talented cast.  Kate Orsini plays Detective Lynch, a new detective to the department who is paired with the seasoned veteran Detective Wolfe, played by Mark Toma. They start off as the good cop bad cop dynamic, but it soon develops into more. Orsini portrays Lynch initially as the straight laced cop but you can tell that she is carrying a secret. She is a tough, no BS character who turns her frustration over how she is treated into a strength. Detective Wolfe is one who wears most of his feelings and frustration on his sleeve though you can tell he also harbors some secrets. He is not all bad though, and there is a soft heart under his hardened, I-am-getting-too-old-for-this-shit exterior. Two of the suspects end up being the most interesting characters. Rachel Alig is Carlucci, the madame of the high end sex worker service. She is a strong, complex, dark character who you will love to hate. Just when you think you have her figured out, another layer is added. My favorite character is the servant of the prince who was killed, Al Mahir, played by Mike Saad. I loved every scene he was in. His personality fills the screen and is the most entertaining. He gets some of the most meaty dialog, which is deserved. I love where they took this character by the end.  There is a lot of social commentary which might turn some viewers off. I feel that this could have been trimmed down. We are able to pick up what the director is laying down in most scenes rather quickly and do not need them to linger as long as they do. Towards the end, some character decisions felt forced. These are minor faults in an otherwise interesting film.
If you enjoy a dark, gritty slower burn murder mystery you will enjoy King Saud. The larger statements the director is trying to make about politics and people are not distracting at all. The performances really drive this story to a satisfying ending. I give it 3.5 stubs.  If you have been following The Final Cut then the name Nicholas Michael Jacobs may sound familiar. One of the first projects of Jacobs’ we covered was a short film titled “Genevieve”. It was a micro-budget independent horror film about a thief who encounters a possessed doll while robbing a house. Four years and seven Genevieve films later, the series will be coming to an epic finale in Genevieve Burns and we have the teaser trailer for it. According to the synopsis, Genevieve Burns is about a priest who encounters the possessed porcelain doll, Genevieve. The doll makes his life a living hell and he decides he must bring the terror of Genevieve to an end.
In true indie fashion, Jacobs will be wearing a number of hats in the filming of Genevieve including playing the tormented priest. While the Genevieve films have been made on a micro-budget, I have found them entertaining and I am really looking forward to seeing this final chapter. For more information, check out the IMDB link below. \https://www.imdb.com/title/tt32613511/  The Exorcism from director Joshua John Miller is a story about Anthony Miller, a down and out former alcoholic and addict actor who lands the role in a remake of a famous horror film after the original star of the remake suffered a deadly accident on the set. At the same time, Anthony’s estranged daughter Lee comes to live with him after being kicked out of school. As the filming goes on, Anthony’s behavior becomes strange and erratic, leaving his daughter to wonder if he has fallen back on his old habits or if there is something darker taking hold of her father.  The best description for The Exorcism is the same description the on-screen director gave about the remake they were making; “a psychological drama wrapped in the skin of a horror movie.” The story here is more about exorcizing your inner demons than it is about demonic possession. Russell Crowe puts in one of his best performances as Anthony. You feel the character’s depression, struggles with addiction, and challenges he is facing in the unforgiving industry that is Hollywood. You can also feel his confusion as he tries to work out if the cause of his behavior is because of his vices or due to an actual demon inside him. You are sympathetic towards him and his daughter who still loves him but can’t forgive him for his past actions. Ryan Simpkins puts in a solid performance as Lee, and has a great connection with Crowe. The two felt like an authentic father/daughter pair, and that dynamic is the heart of the film. I also liked the chemistry between Simpkins and Chloe Bailey who plays Blake Holloway, one of Anthony’s co-stars. I would have liked to see Bailey get more screen time. Blake was mostly there to be the love interest for Lee but thanks to Bailey’s performance, you could tell there are more layers that were never explored.  There are a lot of meta references going on in The Exorcism. It is directed by the son of Jason Miller who played Damien Karras in The Exorcist. A number of sets in the movie within the movie are very similar to sets in The Exorcist, especially the bedroom. Some of the lines of dialog Anthony Miller has are also very similar to Damien’s dialog. The idea that the movie being made is cursed is a reference to the idea that the original Exorcist film was cursed. This parallel is enforced with Peter, the director of the remake. Peter is played by Adam Goldberg, and I do not think it is a coincidence he looks very similar to John Landis. Landis directed Twilight Zone: The Movie which is also considered to be a cursed film.  After the opening scare, it takes a while for The Exorcism to get into a full horror groove. There are creepy demonic moments peppered along the way but it doesn’t get back to being full-blown horror until the final fifteen minutes. The moments we do get are very effective, such as a subtle gimmick they do with Crowes’ eyes and a rather abrupt and brutal kill of a supporting character. Many old-school techniques are used such as a disturbing sound design, with use of shadows and a moody soundtrack to help underscore the creepy tension. For those looking for wall-to-wall horror or foul mouth tirades punctuated with excessive amounts of bodily fluid being thrown across the room, The Exorcism will not be for you. If you are looking for a horror themed drama about inner reflection, coming to terms with your past actions and starting the process of healing then you will want to check it out. As a straight horror film, I would give it 2.5 out of 5 but as a dramatic film with horror elements I would give it a 3.5 out of 5 for the direction and the excellent performance of Russell Crowe. #theexorcism   Do you ever wonder what the time in between victims was like for Jason Vorhees or Michael Meyers? The walking from destination to destination? Director and writer Chris Nash decides to answer that question with In a Violent Nature, an indie slasher film that is told from the perspective of the slasher. Not just any type of slasher, specifically the camp slasher. In a Violent Nature, a couple of campers end up taking a locket they find hanging from a hook in a collapsed fire tower. This awakens the body of Johnny, a victim of a sixty-year-old crime. This resurrected soul leaves a trail of blood and guts in its wake as it searches for the stolen locket and seeks revenge on those who stole it.  In A Violent Nature is a creative approach to a straightforward story we have seen many times before. For the majority of the film, the audience follows behind Johnny as he makes his way to his victims, similar as if you were watching a character in a video game. Nash changes things up visually when Johnny goes in for a kill, and we get tracking shots through the rooms of a house, reverse angles where we can see Johnny coming up behind his victim, and one campfire scene that gives us a brief look at the group of campers Johnny is going to kill. The kills are brutal and gory. The practical gore effects are amazing and one of the highlights. The work of Cinematographer Pierce Derks really helped keep things interesting visually. I particularly liked the moments when the camera would stop and stay static as Johnny walked out of focus towards his prey. There is also solid editing of Johnny’s walking scenes to help convey the passage of time so you know how long he has been walking, without having to experience the full length of travel.  Johnny is played by Ry Barrett who does an excellent job in embodying many of the silent slasher characters that have come before. I caught hints of Michael Meyers, a lot of Jason Vorhees, and even some Cropsy from The Burning. He also brings in his own nuance to the character, especially once he acquires the mask and weapon of choice, two big hooks connected with a chain. He is a silent character so what little emotion he feels is shown through body language. Barrett emotes these feelings perfectly with just a head tilt or gesture. The true hero of this film is not in front of the camera, but behind it. The entire sound department should get top billing for their wonderful work in the sound design. Sound is so important in horror and this team nailed it in every aspect. From the sounds in the woods, to the crunching of leaves, to the smashing of heads, all of it helped put you right there behind Johnny. With no music soundtrack to speak of, the sounds stood out even more.  There was room for improvement in a few of the scenes. One involves a kill later in the movie that seemed a bit out of character. I don’t want to spoil it, but I will say given what we had seen of Johnny by that point in the movie, I would have expected a bit more. There is also something they do with Johnny during a scene involving a mini car on a keychain that I wish they had not done as it took away some of the mystery for me. The ending could have been shorter as there is a setup with no real payoff, just exposition. While I get what they may have been going for, it didn’t quite work for me. In A Violent Nature is a very creative slasher film that takes some risks bucking the expectations one may have for this type of story. It gets top marks for all of the technical aspects while having room for improvement on the story. I can see why many horror fans are divided on it. I find it a refreshing change from many other slashers and can find myself watching it again sometime. If you are looking for something different in your slasher film, this one definitely is going to be for you.  |
AuthorI have been reviewing films since high school. I love discussing films with those who share my passion for them. I also do video reviews on YouTube and on my podcast. Archives
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