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Theatrical Review: The Quiet Ones

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Found footage movies about demonic possession; they’ve been absolutely done to death and ran into the ground over the course of the last several years, and I personally have grown so tired of this particular sub-genre that I often wonder if I’m seeing these movies because I want to see them or simply because I feel obligated to review them. Truth be told, I’m leaning more towards the latter.

That being said, a good movie is a good movie, whether it’s a sequel, a remake, or a rehashing of tired, overplayed ideas, and though The Quiet Ones is in many ways a regurgitation of things we’ve seen many times before, it’s nevertheless a pretty good movie. Well, it’s half good, at least.

Very loosely based on the real-life Philip Experiment of the 1970s, where a group of Canadian parapsychologists attempted to quite literally create a poltergeist, The Quiet Ones is the latest effort from legendary British production company Hammer Films.

Jared Harris stars as an unconventional professor in the 70s-set film, who tasks himself with treating a disturbed young girl (Olivia Cooke), believing that her negative energy has resulted in the manifestation of a supernatural entity that doesn’t really exist. Along with a ragtag team of students, he intends on coaxing the fictitious entity out of her body, hopeful that doing so will cure her mental illness – and mental illness the world over. Or something like that.

As far as movies of this sort go, The Quiet Ones has a fairly unique and original set-up, which is what piqued my interest right out of the gate. While I wouldn’t exactly call it a breath of fresh air, the concept is fresh enough within the realm of possession movies that it at least feels like you’re watching something you haven’t seen before – and that goes a long way, in the wake of us horror fans being hammered over the head with the same movies over and over again. No pun intended. With the hammer thing.

Like most of Hammer’s recent output, including films like Wake Wood and The Woman in Black, The Quiet Ones is fairly elegant and wonderfully restrained in the early going, with a focus on story over the gimmicks of either found footage or paranormal possession cinema. A considerable amount of time passes before anything really happens, which allows us to get to know the characters and immerse ourselves into the atmosphere of the proceedings. And though that may sound boring to some, it’s in these relatively uneventful spans of time that The Quiet Ones really shines, and is at its absolute best.

For at least the first hour of the film, I found myself incredibly invested in the characters and engaged by the story, which is largely thanks to stellar performances from all the actors, most notably Jared Harris and Olivia Cooke. Though you may not know his name I can almost guarantee you’ll recognize Harris’ face, and his performance as the controversial professor who’s frighteningly set in his ways is worth the price of admission alone. He’s good. He’s damn good.

As for Olivia Cooke, who you may know from Bates Motel, she’s equally impressive as the disturbed Jane Harper, who is possessed by the spirit of a deceased child named Evey – or thinks she is, at least. Cooke is at times terrifying and at others very much likable, and the character of Jane Harper is without a doubt one of the more memorable possessed young girls in the recent history of movies about possessed young girls. She’s never too far gone that you feel like there’s no going back and I found myself really rooting for her and hoping she would be cured, which is something I can’t remember feeling about other recent characters of the sort. Above all else, she felt real, which is again kudos to Cooke’s acting chops.

As a whole, the dynamic of the five-person group is highly interesting, and the script smartly puts all the focus on them, rather than bringing unnecessary additional characters into the mix. There’s a whole lot going on there, from ulterior motives to potential love stories and secretive affairs, and a large portion of what made the film so compelling, for me, was that dysfunctional family-like dynamic of the group. The importance of interesting characters can never be overstated, and The Quiet Ones has definitely got them.

The problems with the film almost exclusively arise when it stops being itself and tries to be other movies, and The Quiet Ones, unfortunately, spends a little too much time playing around with the tropes of found footage cinema. The film isn’t entirely told through the found footage style but a good portion of the action is relayed to us via the handheld camera of one of the main characters, which was ultimately a totally unnecessary decision, and a thinly veiled attempt to take advantage of the seemingly undying popularity of that storytelling gimmick.

But it wasn’t really the POV style that bothered me so much as it was the way the film played it so safe whenever the handheld camera was documenting the action, as it ultimately devolves into ‘Found Footage 101’ territory. Whenever anything paranormal actually happened, I found myself tuning out and losing interest, because all of that stuff felt so similar to things I’ve seen in the past. It’s a shame, really, because for the majority of the film it’s much smarter than one that needs to resort to copycat chills and generic thrills, and I really got the sense that the studio felt pressured to throw in certain scenes and moments for the sake of a good trailer and mainstream audience appeal.

It’s interesting because, throughout much of the film, the ‘scary’ moments almost feel like they were crow-barred in after the fact, due to the way that they always quickly cut back to the more interesting, character-driven stuff, just as things are really about to happen. It was as if the movie wasn’t sure if it wanted to be a generic found footage flick or something more interesting, and unfortunately, it heads very much into the former territory in the latter portions, with the interesting bits thrown out in favor of a totally by the numbers conclusion that unnecessarily shows and tells us way too much. A bit more restraint would’ve gone a long way with this film, as it’s oftentimes better to leave the audience guessing, rather than laying everything out for us.

Sometimes, all it takes is a slight spin on the proceedings to make a movie interesting, and The Quiet Ones‘ scientific approach to the idea of spirits, demons, and possession is interesting enough to make it stand out from the pack. The typical strange symbols, loud noises, cheap jump scares, CG’ed demon faces and even a creepy doll are all on display in the film, but it’s also got enough good going for it that it’s one of the more effective and interesting theatrical horror movies to come along in the last couple years.

Despite the fact that The Quiet Ones all too often feels more like a Blumhouse film than a Hammer one, it’s oozing with enough Hammer style that it’s worth a watch, even if you’re completely sick and tired of everything it seems to be about. Believe me, I am too, which is why I give this one a whole lot of credit for entertaining me and keeping my interest. It’s not all good, but it’s good enough, and that makes it worthy of my recommendation.

Hey, look at that. A modern-day theatrical horror flick that I didn’t totally hate… that’s a new one, eh?!

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Review: Is There ‘No Way Up’ For This Shark Film?

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A flock of birds flies into the jet engine of a commercial airliner making it crash into the ocean with only a handful of survivors tasked with escaping the sinking plane while also enduring depleting oxygen and nasty sharks in No Way Up. But does this low-budget film rise above its shopworn monster trope or sink beneath the weight of its shoestring budget?

First, this film obviously isn’t on the level of another popular survival film, Society of the Snow, but surprisingly it isn’t Sharknado either. You can tell a lot of good direction went into making it and its stars are up for the task. The histrionics are kept at a bare minimum and unfortunately the same can be said about the suspense. That isn’t to say that No Way Up is a limp noodle, there is plenty here to keep you watching until the end, even if the last two minutes is offensive to your suspension of disbelief.

Let’s start with the good. No Way Up has plenty of good acting, especially from its lead Sophie McIntosh who plays Ava, a rich governor’s daughter with a heart of gold. Inside, she is struggling with the memory of her mother’s drowning and is never far from her overprotective older bodyguard Brandon played with nannyish diligence by Colm Meaney. McIntosh doesn’t reduce herself to the size of a B-movie, she is fully committed and gives a strong performance even if the material is trodden.

No Way Up

Another standout is Grace Nettle playing the 12-year-old Rosa who is traveling with her grandparents Hank (James Caroll Jordan) and Mardy (Phyllis Logan). Nettle doesn’t reduce her character to a delicate tween. She’s scared yes, but she also has some input and pretty good advice about surviving the situation.

Will Attenborough plays the unfiltered Kyle who I imagine was there for comic relief, but the young actor never successfully tempers his meanness with nuance, therefore he just comes across as a die-cut archetypical asshole inserted to complete the diverse ensemble.

Rounding out the cast is Manuel Pacific who plays Danilo the flight attendant who is the mark of Kyle’s homophobic aggressions. That whole interaction feels a bit outdated, but again Attenborough hasn’t fleshed out his character well enough to warrant any.

No Way Up

Continuing on with what is good in the film are the special effects. The plane crash scene, as they always are, is terrifying and realistic. Director Claudio Fäh has spared no expense in that department. You have seen it all before, but here, since you know they are crashing into the Pacific it’s more tense and when the plane hits the water you’ll wonder how they did it.

As for the sharks they are equally impressive. It’s hard to tell if they used live ones. There are no hints of CGI, no uncanny valley to speak of and the fish are genuinely threatening, although they don’t get the screentime you might be expecting.

Now with the bad. No Way Up is a great idea on paper, but the reality is something like this couldn’t happen in real life, especially with a jumbo jet crashing into the Pacific Ocean at such a fast speed. And even though the director has successfully made it seem like it could happen, there are so many factors that just don’t make sense when you think about it. Underwater air pressure is the first to come to mind.

It also lacks a cinematic polish. It has this straight-to-video feel, but the effects are so good that you can’t help but feel the cinematography, especially inside the plane should have been slightly elevated. But I’m being pedantic, No Way Up is a good time.

The ending doesn’t quite live up to the film’s potential and you will be questioning the limits of the human respiratory system, but again, that’s nitpicking.

Overall, No Way Up is a great way to spend an evening watching a survival horror movie with the family. There are some bloody images, but nothing too bad, and the shark scenes can be mildly intense. It is rated R on the low end.

No Way Up might not be the “next great shark” movie, but it is a thrilling drama that rises above the other chum so easily thrown into the waters of Hollywood thanks to the dedication of its stars and believable special effects.

No Way Up is now available to rent on digital platforms.

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TADFF: ‘Founders Day’ is a Sly Cynical Slasher [Movie Review]

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Founders Day

The horror genre is inherently socio-political. For every zombie film there’s a theme of social unrest; with each monster or mayhem there’s an exploration of our cultural fears. Even the slasher subgenre isn’t immune, with meditations on gender politics, morality, and (quite often) sexuality. With Founders Day, brothers Erik and Carson Bloomquist take the political leanings of horror and make them far more literal.

Short clip from Founders Day

In Founders Day, a small town is shaken by a series of ominous killings in the days leading up to a heated mayoral election. As accusations fly and the threat of a masked killer darkens every street corner, the residents must race to uncover the truth before fear consumes the town.

The film stars Devin Druid (13 Reasons Why), Emilia McCarthy (SkyMed), Naomi Grace (NCIS), Olivia Nikkanen (The Society), Amy Hargreaves (Homeland), Catherine Curtin (Stranger Things), Jayce Bartok (SubUrbia), and William Russ (Boy Meets World). The cast are all very strong in their roles, with particular praise to the two smarmy politicians, played by Hargreaves and Bartok. 

As a Zoomer-facing horror film, Founders Day feels heavily inspired by the 90s teen horror cycle. There’s a wide cast of characters (each a very specific and easily identifiable “type”), some sexy brooding pop music, slashtacular violence, and a whodunnit mystery that pulls the pace. But there’s a lot going on inside the engine; a strong “this social structure is bullshit” energy makes certain scenes all the more relevant. 

One scene shows a feuding protest mob drop their signs to fight over who gets to comfort and protect a queer woman of colour (each claiming “she’s with us”). Another shows a politician attempting to rile up their constituents with an impassioned speech, calling them to storm the town in an offensive defense. Even the diametrically opposed mayoral candidates wear their allegiances on their sleeve (a vote for “change” versus a vote for “consistency”). There’s a whole overarching theme of popularity and profiting from tragedy. It’s not subtle, but dammit it works. 

Behind the commentary is director/co-writer/actor Erik Bloomquist, a two-time New England Emmy Award Winner (Outstanding Writer and Director for The Cobblestone Corridor) and former Top 200 Director on HBO’s Project Greenlight. His work on this film is slasher-horror  comprehensive; from tense single-take shots and excessive violence to a potentially iconic killer’s weapon and costume (that cleverly incorporates the Sock and Buskin comedy/tragedy mask).

Founders Day offers the basic necessities of the slasher subgenre (including some well-timed comedic delivery) while poking a middle finger at political institutions. It presents unflattering commentary on both sides of the fence, suggesting less “right versus left” ideology and more “burn it all down and start over” cynicism. It’s a surprisingly effective inspiration. 

If political horror isn’t for you, that’s… fine, but there’s some bad news. Horror is commentary. Horror is a reflection of our anxieties; it’s a reaction to politics, economy, tension, and history. It’s a counterculture that acts as a mirror on culture, and it’s meant to engage and challenge. 

Films like Night of the Living Dead, Soft and Quiet, and The Purge franchise present a biting commentary on the damaging effects of strong politics; Founders Day cynically reflects on the absurd theatre of these politics. It’s poignant that the suggested target audience for this film is the next generation of voters and leaders. Through all the slashing, stabbing, and screaming, it’s a powerful way to promote change. 

Founders Day played as part of the Toronto After Dark Film Festival. For more on the politics of horror, read about Mia Goth defending the genre.

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[Fantastic Fest] ‘Infested’ is Guaranteed to Make Audiences Squirm, Jump and Scream

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Infested

It has been a while since spiders were effective in making folks lose their minds with fear in theaters. The last time I recall it being lose your mind suspenseful was with Arachnophobia. The latest from director, Sébastien Vaniček creates the same event cinema that Arachnophobia did when it was originally released.

Infested begins with a few individuals out in the middle of desert looking for exotic spiders under rocks. Once located, the spider is taken in a container to be sold to collectors.

Flash to Kaleb an individual absolutely obsessed with exotic pets. In fact, he has an illegal mini collection of them in his flat. Of course, Kaleb makes the desert spider a nice little home in a shoe box complete with cozy bits for the spider to relax. To his astonishment, the spider manages to escape from the box. It doesn’t take long to discover that this spider is deadly and it reproduces at alarming rates. Soon, the building is completely packed with them.

Infested

You know those little moments we all have had with unwelcome insects that come into our home. You know those instants right before we hit them with a broom or before we put a glass over them. Those little moments in which they suddenly launch at us or decide to run at the speed of light are what Infested does flawlessly. There are plenty of moments in which someone attempts to kill them with a broom, only to be shocked that the spider runs right up their arm and onto their face or neck. shudders

The residents of the building are also quarantined by the police who initially believe that there is a viral outbreak in the building. So, these unfortunate residents are stuck inside with tons of spiders moving freely in vents, corners and anywhere else you can think of. There are scenes in which you can see someone in the restroom washing their face/hands and also happen to see a whole lot of spiders crawling out of the vent behind them. The film is filled with plenty of big chilling moments like that which don’t let up.

The ensemble of characters is all brilliant. Each of them perfectly draws from the drama, comedy, and terror and makes that work in every beat of the film.

The film also plays on current tensions in the world between police states and people who attempt to speak out when in need of real help. The rock and a hard place architecture of the film is a perfect contrast.

In fact, once Kaleb and his neighbors decide they are locked inside, the chills and body count begin to rise as the spiders begin to grow and reproduce.

Infested is Arachnophobia meets a Safdie Brothers film such as Uncut Diamonds. Add the Safdie Brothers intense moments filled with characters talking over each other and shouting in fast-talking, anxiety-inducing conversations to a chilling environment filled with deadly spiders crawling all over people and you have Infested.

Infested is unnerving and seethes with second-to-second nail-biting terrors. This is the scariest time you are likely to have in a movie theater for a long time. If you didn’t have arachnophobia before watching Infested, you will after.

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