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Movie Review: “The Atticus Institute”

Published

9 years ago

January 26, 2015

As possession movies go, The Atticus Institute is a very slow burn. There aren’t any anatomy defying special effects or levitating flannel nightgowns. What the movie does have is an intriguing storyline and very believable actors.

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The Atticus Institute, starring William Mapother (Another Earth, The Grudge) and Rya Kihlstedt (Home Alone 3, Deep Impact) and directed by Chris Sparling, revolves around the research lab named in the title, which tests people’s abilities of telekinesis, pyrokenisis and E.S.P. Their goal is to discover their own Nina Kuligina; a very real Russian woman who was believed to have successfully conquered mind-over-matter.

Through their research, the small institute discovers some notable people with abilities to predict symbols on cards hidden from view, and a few small feats of telekinesis. But when the frumpy Judith Winestead (Kihlstedt) joins the studies, the lab becomes a battleground between the will of the devil and eventually the U.S. military defense department.

Judith (Kihlstedt) is not herself lately.

The beauty of The Atticus Institute is in the way it unfolds its story. Through video surveillance and old photographs, the attention to 1970’s detail is astounding. Everything is right about the era, including props, costumes and hairstyles.

The narrative also includes sit-down style interviews with the scientists that were a part of the institute during its operation and Judith’s stay there almost 40 years previous. The film makers have done an excellent job at casting both the modern cast and their forty-year younger counterparts.

Last year Jill Larson gave us a performance that was worthy of an Oscar ® nod in “The Taking of Deborah Logan”, her slow fall into mental illness, Alzheimer’s and possession was extraordinary. The depths that Larson had to mine to bring her character through the complications of the real world while dealing with the manipulations of the underworld is inspired.

Unfortunately Kihlstedt, as the possessed Judith, has little to say in The Atticus Institute, but that doesn’t mean her performance is any less noteworthy. Although we are never certain at which stage her possession has taken hold when we first meet her, she manages to take risks, and as a result her actions give the viewer an uneasiness. This otherwise dowdy, timid woman in a sweater-set snarling, glowering and doing things that are clearly the characteristics of possession are just capricious enough to be interesting.

70’s technology really brings out the low tones

Once the defense department makes its appearance, the movie switches from a study of a human with unexplainable powers to one of inhumane treatment of people and…frogs. The defense general puts Judith through rigorous tests and demands the demon inside her enter other people’s minds in order to see if its powers can be used as a weapon. Nice concept, but the movie could have taken a bit more liberties with this angle instead of reducing it to an unsalted series of mind reading and forced thought control.

The Defense Dept. tries to bottle The Devil

By the end of the film we are non-the-wiser about the true character of Judith, She is a monster plain and simple except for a small scene where her real personality finally emerges, but that is cut short as the circumstances change and the ending manages to attempt a twist.

The Atticus Institute is a well-performing engine that is perfect for the VOD world. Not particularly scary or jolting, the movie relies heavily on period design and performances. A seasoned cast, attention to detail and an interesting premise should fill 90 minutes of your time, but don’t expect anything more than a nice cup of tea instead of a double espresso served neat.

You can order your copy of “The Atticus Institute” here.

Order your copy at Amazon, or rent on VOD today!

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Netflix Releases First BTS ‘Fear Street: Prom Queen’ Footage

Published

16 hours ago

April 30, 2024

Timothy Rawles

It’s been three long years since Netflix unleashed the bloody, but enjoyable Fear Street on its platform. Released in a tryptic fashion, the streamer broke up the story into three episodes, each taking place in a different decade which by the finale were all tied together.

Now, the streamer is in production for its sequel Fear Street: Prom Queen which brings the story into the 80s. Netflix gives a synopsis of what to expect from Prom Queen on their blog site Tudum:

“Welcome back to Shadyside. In this next installment of the blood-soaked Fear Street franchise, prom season at Shadyside High is underway and the school’s wolfpack of It Girls is busy with its usual sweet and vicious campaigns for the crown. But when a gutsy outsider is unexpectedly nominated to the court, and the other girls start mysteriously disappearing, the class of ’88 is suddenly in for one hell of a prom night.”

Based on R.L. Stine’s massive series of Fear Street novels and spin-offs, this chapter is number 15 in the series and was published in 1992.

FEAR STREET: PROM QUEEN IS NOW IN PRODUCTION 🩸 Welcome to Shadyside High. We're gonna have a killer time. pic.twitter.com/jDl0zRa2CH
— Netflix (@netflix) April 30, 2024

Fear Street: Prom Queen features a killer ensemble cast, including India Fowler (The Nevers, Insomnia), Suzanna Son (Red Rocket, The Idol), Fina Strazza (Paper Girls, Above the Shadows), David Iacono (The Summer I Turned Pretty, Cinnamon), Ella Rubin (The Idea of You), Chris Klein (Sweet Magnolias, American Pie), Lili Taylor (Outer Range, Manhunt) and Katherine Waterston (The End We Start From, Perry Mason).

No word on when Netflix will drop the series into its catalog.

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News

Live Action Scooby-Doo Reboot Series In Works at Netflix

Published

17 hours ago

April 30, 2024

Timothy Rawles

The ghosthunting Great Dane with an anxiety problem, Scooby-Doo, is getting a reboot and Netflix is picking up the tab. Variety is reporting that the iconic show is becoming an hour-long series for the streamer although no details have been confirmed. In fact, Netflix execs declined to comment.

If the project is a go, this would be the first live-action movie based on the Hanna-Barbera cartoon since 2018’s Daphne & Velma. Before that, there were two theatrical live-action movies, Scooby-Doo (2002) and Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed (2004), then two sequels that premiered on The Cartoon Network.

Currently, the adult-oriented Velma is streaming on Max.

Scooby-Doo originated in 1969 under the creative team Hanna-Barbera. The cartoon follows a group of teenagers who investigate supernatural happenings. Known as Mystery Inc., the crew consists of Fred Jones, Daphne Blake, Velma Dinkley, and Shaggy Rogers, and his best friend, a talking dog named Scooby-Doo.

Normally the episodes revealed the hauntings they encountered were hoaxes developed by land-owners or other nefarious characters hoping to scare people away from their properties. The original TV series named Scooby-Doo, Where Are You! ran from 1969 to 1986. It was so successful that movie stars and pop culture icons would make guest appearances as themselves in the series.

Celebrities such as Sonny & Cher, KISS, Don Knotts, and The Harlem Globetrotters made cameos as did Vincent Price who portrayed Vincent Van Ghoul in a few episodes.

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News

BET Releasing New Original Thriller: The Deadly Getaway

Published

17 hours ago

April 30, 2024

Cameron McFarland

BET will soon be offering horror fans a rare treat. The studio has announced the official release date for their new original thriller, The Deadly Getaway. Directed by Charles Long (The Trophy Wife), this thriller sets up a heart racing game of cat and mouse for audiences to sink their teeth into.

Wanting to break up the monotony of their routine, Hope and Jacob set off to spend their vacation at a simple cabin in the woods. However, things go sideways when Hope’s ex-boyfriend shows up with a new girl at the same campsite. Things soon spiral out of control. Hope and Jacob must now work together to escape the woods with their lives.

The Deadly Getaway is written by Eric Dickens (Makeup X Breakup) and Chad Quinn (Reflections of US). The Film stars, Yandy Smith-Harris (Two Days in Harlem), Jason Weaver (The Jacksons: An American Dream), and Jeff Logan (My Valentine Wedding).

Showrunner Tressa Azarel Smallwood had the following to say about the project. “The Deadly Getaway is the perfect reintroduction to classic thrillers, which encompass dramatic twists, and spine-chilling moments. It showcases the range and diversity of emerging Black writers across genres of film and television.”

The Deadly Getaway will premiere on 5.9.2024, exclusively ion BET+.