Dir - Damian Mc Carthy
Overall: GOOD
A case of relentless unease over relatable storytelling, Damien Mc Carthy's full-length debut Caveat is a mixed bag when looked at completely, yet it excels in areas that most genre movies fail at. Shot cheaply and with a minimal cast, the production department does marvelous work under such confines. The small isolated island house where the film takes place nearly in its entity is a textbook creepy locale, with numerous holes in the wall, shoddy electrical wiring, rusted and bare bones furniture, and an overall aesthetic as if nothing but ghosts have been "living" there for decades. Yet what could have been cliched and unconvincing is instead turned into a place of hair-raising dread due to the slow boil approach, minimalist soundtrack, and some wonderfully creepy moments that make no logical sense yet still achieve the best type of subtle haunted house freakiness. The first and third acts are the most effective when we are wondering just what kind of supernatural tomfoolery is conducting business here, but sadly, the middle section throws in an unnecessary twist that deviates from the more interesting otherworldly aspects. It takes some plausibility liberties early on as well, but as far as spooky for the sake of spooky goes, it deserves an A.
Dir - Kevin Kopacka
Overall: MEH
A frustrating and aggressively impenetrable full-length debut from filmmaker Kevin Kopacka, Hager, (Hades), takes a relentless, drug-fueled trek into the psyche of its title character; a police officer that is assigned the case of tracking down a dangerous street narcotic that sends its users into a psychological abyss. Based on such a premise, expecting anything coherent here would be a mistake on the viewer's part, but the translation of Kopacka and co-screenwriter H.K. DeWitt's ideas makes for a muddled affair that never gains any focus. It essentially deals with the duality of Philipp Droste's protagonist who has undergone or is undergoing some kind of family trauma that is never explained, while also dealing with his own infidelity and frustration with his long-term yet doting girlfriend. This is all under the backdrop of his stressful and dangerous job, yet the problem is that the free-flowing and non-linear narrative throws everything into question. We have no idea what are actual events or what are hallucinations, which again is likely done purposely, but it puts us at a constant distance from the people on screen, as if they are merely disturbed mental fragments instead of actual human beings to relate to. It is all in service of a waking nightmare that isolates the one having it, but the wacked-out and start-and-stop style is more aggravating than engrossing.
Dir - Erik Bloomquist
Overall: MEH
In the half-assed throwback Ten Minutes to Midnight, Erik and Carson Bloomquist go for head-trippy excess in the work place, with veteran scream queen Caroline Williams picking up where she left off in The Texas Chainsaw Massacre Part 2 as a radio DJ who undergoes a night from hell. The specifics are different of course, with Williams herself being long in the tooth, (pun intended because vampires), and playing a character that is unceremoniously replaced at her job with a young attractive upstart by her misogynistic boss. The Bloomquist's go to some weird places within such a context, playing off of the traumatic insecurities of Williams' character who feels that she has given her best years to her gig and now has to be put to rest, eternally it would seem. Where the whole undead metaphor fits in is murky at best and the dialog, performances, and tacky set pieces are full-blown schlock from front to back. This is unfortunate since there are some sincere themes being explored around ageism and sexism, plus it is always nice to see actors getting more work in and embracing a genre that made them famous three decades ago. Williams is ideally cast in this respect and she knows the assignment, but the movie itself stumbles through its agenda.
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