Movies

Indie Movie Review: The Bridgewater Triangle

Published

10 years ago

April 23, 2014

Every town has its urban legends. Bigfoot. The Loch Ness Monster. Mothman. The Jersey Devil. Chupacabra… The list goes on.

Living in southeastern Massachusetts, our myth goes beyond a single being or species. Instead, we have an entire 200-square-mile region with a storied past of strange sightings, known as The Bridgewater Triangle. There have been numerous books written about the area, but directors Aaron Cadieux and Manny Famolare are the first to explore the subject with a feature-length documentary. Aptly titled The Bridgewater Triangle, the film attempts to make sense of the unexplainable.

Likened to the Bermuda Triangle, author Loren Coleman first defined the parameters and dubbed the area the Bridgewater Triangle in his 1983 book, Mysterious America. The name stuck and the legend has only seemed to grow stronger in the years since, but there is a longstanding history of unexplained activity in the area.

One of the most diverse hot spots of phenomena in the world, the Bridgewater Triangle has been said to include unidentified flying objects, animal mutilations, hauntings, apparitions, disappearances, and inexplicable orbs of lights, among others. Cryptozoological animal sightings are a common occurrence; people have reported seeing Bigfoot, various large dogs, cats, snakes and birds, and several unidentifiable creatures. The film dedicates time to each of these mysteries and more.

Nestled in the middle of the Triangle is Hockomock Swamp, the epicenter of activity. The documentary explores this and other interesting landmarks, including Dighton Rock, a large boulder inscribed with indecipherable writing of unknown origin, and a Native American burial ground located within the region.

One potential source of the power behind the Bridgewater Triangle is King Philip’s War, a lengthy, brutal fight between the English colonists and the Native Americans in the 1600s. The bloodiest conflict in American history per capita, the war killed 5% of all New England residents at the time. Some theorize that the Native Americans placed a curse on the land, while others question if the war was merely another result of the existing evil.

The Bridgewater Triangle’s interview subjects consist of eyewitnesses, paranormal researchers, cryptozoologists, historians, authors (including the aforementioned Coleman), journalists, and other experts. Naturally, their stories are largely comprised of second and third-hand information, so it’s particularly exciting to see the bits of original footage and EVP recordings, unclear as they may be, provided by some of the witnesses.

The interviewees generally approach the subject matter seriously, although there are a few scattered moments of levity. Some of the people involved began as skeptics before firsthand experiences turned them into believers. That said, the folks interviewed are also able to recognize that some stories are little more than urban legends passed down without evidence. Others occurrences, however, are so common that they’re difficult to refute.

The Bridgewater Triangle is briskly paced; it packs a lot of information in 91 minutes without becoming overly dry. Like any documentary, some segments run a little long while others seem glossed over, but overall it’s well-balanced. The professional-quality production is reminiscent of something you’d find on the History Channel or Discovery Channel while channel surfing, only to be sucked in by its fascinating subject matter. My only gripe – and it’s a tiny one – is that the ambient background music borders on distracting during some interviews.

Regardless of if you’re a Massachusetts local or if you’ve never heard of the Bridgewater Triangle, the documentary is an undeniably interesting affair (as long as you can look past a few thick Bostonian accents). Even as a skeptic, I found it a bit creepy. More importantly, The Bridgewater Triangle will keep you wondering what other oddities are waiting to be discovered in your own backyard.

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Related Topics:Documentary Indie Review The Bridgewater Triangle

Movies

Another Creepy Spider Movie Hits Shudder This Month

Published

2 hours ago

April 18, 2024

Timothy Rawles

Good spider films are a theme this year. First, we had Sting and then there was Infested. The former is still in theaters and the latter is coming to Shudder starting April 26.

Infested has been getting some good reviews. People are saying that it’s not only a great creature feature but also a social commentary on racism in France.

According to IMDb: Writer/director Sébastien Vanicek was looking for ideas around the discrimination faced by black and Arab-looking people in France, and that led him to spiders, which are rarely welcome in homes; whenever they’re spotted, they’re swatted. As everyone in the story (people and spiders) is treated like vermin by society, the title came to him naturally.

Shudder has become the gold standard for streaming horror content. Since 2016, the service has been offering fans an expansive library of genre movies. in 2017, they began to stream exclusive content.

Since then Shudder has become a powerhouse in the film festival circuit, buying distribution rights to movies, or just producing some of their own. Just like Netflix, they give a film a short theatrical run before adding it to their library exclusively for subscribers.

Late Night With the Devil is a great example. It was released theatrically on March 22 and will begin streaming on the platform starting April 19.

While not getting the same buzz as Late Night, Infested is a festival favorite and many have said if you suffer from arachnophobia, you might want to take heed before watching it.

^Infested

According to the synopsis, our main character, Kalib is turning 30 and dealing with some family issues. “He’s fighting with his sister over an inheritance and has cut ties with his best friend. Fascinated by exotic animals, he finds a venomous spider in a shop and brings it back to his apartment. It only takes a moment for the spider to escape and reproduce, turning the whole building into a dreadful web trap. The only option for Kaleb and his friends is to find a way out and survive.”

The film will be available to watch on Shudder starting April 26.

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Movies

Part Concert, Part Horror Movie M. Night Shyamalan’s ‘Trap’ Trailer Released

Published

4 hours ago

April 18, 2024

Timothy Rawles

In true Shyamalan form, he sets his film Trap inside a social situation where we aren’t sure what is going on. Hopefully, there is a twist at the end. Furthermore, we hope it’s better than the one in his divisive 2021 movie Old.

The trailer seemingly gives away a lot, but, as in the past, you can’t rely on his trailers because they are often red herrings and you are being gaslit to think a certain way. For instance, his movie Knock at the Cabin was completely different than what the trailer implied and if you hadn’t read the book on which the film is based it was still like going in blind.

The plot for Trap is being dubbed an “experience” and we aren’t quite sure what that means. If we were to guess based on the trailer, it’s a concert movie wrapped around a horror mystery. There are original songs performed by Saleka, who plays Lady Raven, a kind of Taylor Swift/Lady Gaga hybrid. They have even set up a Lady Raven website to further the illusion.

Here is the fresh trailer:

According to the synopsis, a father takes his daughter to one of Lady Raven’s jam-packed concerts, “where they realize they’re at the center of a dark and sinister event.”

Written and directed by M. Night Shyamalan, Trap stars Josh Hartnett, Ariel Donoghue, Saleka Shyamalan, Hayley Mills and Allison Pill. The film is produced by Ashwin Rajan, Marc Bienstock and M. Night Shyamalan. The executive producer is Steven Schneider.

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Movies

Renny Harlin’s Recent Horror Movie ‘Refuge’ Releasing in U.S. This Month

Published

1 day ago

April 17, 2024

Timothy Rawles

War is hell, and in Renny Harlin’s latest film Refuge it seems that’s an understatement. The director whose work includes Deep Blue Sea, The Long Kiss Goodnight, and the upcoming reboot of The Strangers made Refuge last year and it played in Lithuania and Estonia this past November.

But it’s coming to select U.S. theaters and VOD starting on April 19th, 2024

Here is what it’s about: “Sergeant Rick Pedroni, who comes home to his wife Kate changed and dangerous after suffering an attack by a mysterious force during combat in Afghanistan.”

The story is inspired by an article producer Gary Lucchesi read in National Geographic about how wounded soldiers create painted masks as representations of how they feel.

Take a look at the trailer: