Reviews: The Short Films of Andrea Ricca

Text © Richard Gary / FFanzeen, 2018

Images from the Internet

Italian director Andrea Ricca has been making short horror and Sci-Fi films since the late 1990s. All the 14 included here are without dialogue – though worth listening to for the amusingly and occasionally cheesy electronic music. Many are humorous, and are made on extremely low budgets, but with a lot of love; at least that’s the impression they give. These films are all mostly one-man projects, when it comes to the production (and sometimes the acting). Ricca does nearly all his own “scripting, shooting, acting, editing, special effects, 3D modellation and animation” (though occasionally he’s helped on the post-productions. That is extremely impressive considering the volume of output. Don’t believe me? All the films reviewed on this blog are free, which are presented in alphabetical order rather than chronological,  so watch so see them yourself HERE. 

Alien Worms

4 minutes, 2016

A member of the U.F.O.B.I. governmental agency follows the trail of a space craft that has crashed to Earth with a bunch of, well, alien worms onboard that are subsequently let loose. They look like smaller versions of the worms from either Tremors (1990) or Dune (1984). He fights them in a house, with the use of high-tech equipment and a handgun. The worms’ are definitely homemade digital, and sometimes they look great, and occasionally they look static, even when they move; think of a still picture being pulled across the screen. All in all, it’s actually a fun pic, and doesn’t last very long, with an obligatory ending style. It’s a drama with a nice style.

Aliens Night

7:40 minutes, 2014

A really fun and pleasing piece about a scientist (Sefani Autori) who is surprised at home by three Greys, who have dubious, yet unknown, ideas regarding her. The hunter and hunted switch roles back and forth, playing nicely. The aliens look good, though they move a bit like that digital dancing lizard that everyone seems to be imitating on Social Media. As a storyline, albeit short, this is actually quite satisfying, though lots of questions are left unanswered, hopefully done so by the 2016 sequel below.

Aliens Night 2: The Grey’s Return

4:00 minutes, 2016

The sequel is taken less seriously than the first, being more comedic, which I’m also okay with; this seem actually unrelated to the previous other than the same spaceship and aliens models are used. This time the Greys show up at a man’s house (Ricca), and he tries to razzle dazzle them, again with the hunter/hunted paradigms. In all, it was quite amusing and enjoyable, though quite not-what-would-happen; however, the ending is a bit of a snide commentary on UFO fandom that I believe to be quite accurate.

The Amulet of Fear

5:29 minutes, 2017

While taking a break from reading a horror novel, a woman (Ludovica Ferrara) finds a strange amulet in a small wicker basket, and before you know it, she must use her ingenuity (and yes, a hand gun) to fend off a mysterious digital demon creature in an it’s-you-or-me game of life or death. There is some subtle humor though it’s dark, but remains fun throughout its short run. I am definitely seeing a trend through the films, but it’s mashed up enough to keep it interesting. Though obviously digital, the creature looks pretty good.

The Furfangs

5:04 minutes, 2010

A man (Ricca) on the eve of getting engaged has a visit from a small, rag-tag group of space furballs with fangs that are about the size of softballs reminiscent of the tribbles, with eyes and teeth similar to the Zuni doll in the classic TV film, Trilogy of Terror (1975); there is even a nod to it with a toaster oven. Unlike the Karen Black release, this is an effective comedy that could have been longer, and still would have been worth the watch.

The Furfangs 2

2:12 minutes, 2011

While much shorter, this one is more ominous than its predecessor, with our intrepid hero (still no spouse) once again visited by a trio of these digital dustballs, and once again he uses various common household appliances to thwart them as best he can; perhaps a primer on how to deal with these creatures should they actually show up at the viewers’ door? As with the first, he keeps his calm, even though knocked about here and there, and fights for the right to… party? Anyway, I got distracted. There is a hint of a third in the series, and I’m ready.

The Giant Scorpion

4:05 minutes, 2016

While at home (I am really seeing a motif here), a young and agile woman (Ilaria Lamberti) is visited by a scorpion that is about the size of a large German Shephard, transformed from a normal one by the radiation from a meteorite that lands nearby (that nobody seems to have heard; I’m just sayin’). She resourcefully uses household items to fend off the creature, which seems to be a bit slow moving; that being said, the weight difference between the small insect and the larger one would probably make a difference as it tries to compensate. And the ending made me smile in a winking at millennials way.

The Guardian

4:11 minutes, 2008

As a chance of pace, a modern Indiana Jones (Michele Di Mauro), if you will, finds a treasure of a small and ancient clay bottle that is protected by a, yep, guardian. This OG looks a lot like the skeleton guards from Jason and the Argonauts (1963), and his murder in its eyes… well, its skull, anyway. It’s out to get back said ceramic, with his shield, helmet and vorpal sword in hand (the former leading to an extremely amusing moment that is acknowledged by the background music, and alone is worth seeing.

The Ouija Board Secret

2:00 minutes, 2018

This recent film follows a bit of the same formula of a guy (Ricca) in his house under attack by ghosts and demons, but there are some demonstrable differences from anything I’ve seen before, such as there being two human (I believe) characters, one of whom seems to be based on the Asian angry-dead-woman-in-white-with-long-hair genre (The Ring, the Grudge, etc.), but this one has a more sinister tone than previous Ricca works and takes in off in a bit of a different departure than the others I’ve seen up to now. The effects are getting better and there are definitely some script growth of which I approve (not that I’m telling Ricca how to do his films!).

Space Monster

3:35 minutes, 2015

Gloss-lipped and cute Ilaria Lamberti is home alone when an extraterrestrial container lands in her yard. The evil, nasty titular creature breaks out and chases her out to her car as she tries to make her escape, but not without the beastie hopping onto the roof of the car, as she valiantly tries to shake it off and/or kill it. It’s a well done chase scene where everything except Lamberti and the car are CGI, once she leaves the house. Though short and sweet, there is a nice level of suspense, but it’s hard to have a dull film with a speeding car and a monster, eh wot? This is a fun drive, but more for the viewer than the protagonist, I would assume.

Spider Danger

5:03 minutes, 2012

After the destruction of a spider planet, the debris from it lands in the yard of a man (Ricca) that has a pet sider (in a glass fish-tank kind of structure), who is of course totally unaware of this object crashing nearby. Suddenly his own spider grows huge and the eggs of a batch of spiders from the other plant (rather than Spiders from Mars, I guess) are on the prowl, with the guy defending himself, yes, with objects found around the house. It’s amusing with a nice turn at the end, with a bit of humor.

The Spirit Board

5:17 minutes, 2016

The bored new owner of a house (Ilaria Lamberti) finds a Ouija board with the smallest palette I’ve ever seen, at about the size of an American dollar coin. She holds a solo séance that unleashes a nasty spirit that has come to take her back to…wherever it came from. She has to outsmart it, or die trying. While not a comedy, there are some nice spooky moments that may still bring a smile in bemusement. The short is shot in a mixture of green-tinted black and white, and a wash-out color.

The Spooky Ghost

7:00 minutes, 2013

A young woman (Francesca Simonelli) in a tight tanktop’s car runs out of gas on a deserted road besides an old and spooky house that’s for sale. Of course, the house comes with a ghostly tenant that looks like it belongs in Disney’s Haunted Mansion: it’s green, chubby, and has both a bowtie and derby hat. In this comic turn, while the ghost is hardly scary (purposefully, I am assuming), there are other really nice FX moments that are bound to please those who like PG fare. It’s a battle of the wits between our heroine and the spooky ghost. This really was a hoot.

UFO Race

2:25 minutes, 2009

For an amusing end, we catch up (see what I did there?) with a solo driver (Ricca) who meets up with a UFO filled with a couple of bored ETs on a lonely road. So what do they do? They challenge the dude to a race, of course. A bit tortoise and hare premise, considering the flying machine can travel between solar systems, but the guy is up for it. It ends with a smile for everyone, especially the viewer. It’s damn silly, but sometimes that just what one needs in a landscape full of Xenomorphs and Predators.

Review: Habit

Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2018

Images from the Internet

Habit

Directed by Simeon Halligan

Not a Number / Tin Hat Productions / Blue Diamond Pictures

96 minutes, 2017 / 2018

https://www.notanumber.co.uk/

www.habitmovie.com

Manchester, England, England / Across the Atlantic Sea… It’s a town known for, among other things, melancholia, producing such music as the Smiths and Joy Division / New Order (none of whom show up in the soundtrack, thankfully). Not exactly a cheery lot. So it makes sense that it would be the locale for a somber film of blood, guts and… well, I’m getting ahead of myself here.

Elliot James Langridge

Based on the novel by Stephen McGeagh, we are introduced to slacker Michael (Elliot James Langridge) who meets Lee (Jessica Barden, the big name in the cast due to her work on the 2017 Brit series “The End of the F***ing World”) on the way to an employment agency. Late at underdressed in a gray hoodie, he’s a bit seedy, and she’s excitable, in a way reminiscent of the Melanie Griffith character in Something Wild (1986), without the extreme and exaggerated danger level, though she seems more stable as time goes on. Before the scene is over and less than 10 minutes into the film, she’s talked her way into moving in with him and his toe-jam pickin’ roommate, Dig (Andrew Ellis); think of the Rhys Ifans character from Nodding Hill (1999), though without the charm. Personally, I would have asked for some ID to see her age; Barden is mid-‘20s, but can easily pass for close to underage, wildish or not. Why take the chance, eh? Anyway, I digress…

Jessica Barden

To thank him for the arrangement, Lee gets him a job at her Uncle Ian’s (William Ash) – err – massage parlour working the door security. It isn’t long before he discovers the big secret of the place, though it isn’t that hard to figure out, even if you just watch the trailer or see the attached publicity photos. It’s also not a new theme these days, with the likes of the “Santa Clarita Diet” (2017-ongoing) and especially Raw (2016).

The film builds nicely, one foot in front of the other, as we delve ever deeper into Michael’s old (through dreams and flashback) and new life. Lee hints early on that she knows that he’s ”different,” and being a genre film, you know something wicked this way comes in wrappings of a woman with a child-like face. A similar technique is used in real life to drag life stragglers into cults, and this one is a doozy.

Roxanne Pallett

There is a bit of competition hinted at between Lee and one of the women at the parlor, the very hot Alex (Roxanne Pallett, sporting a very ‘60s Carnaby Street vibe; think Julie Christie), who is somewhat the antithesis of Lee (cute-sexy vs. hooker-sexy). Also caught up in the whole thing is Michael’s confused and OCD sister with some PSTD issues, Mand (cute Sally Carman, currently on “Coronation Street”).

Nearly everything the audience learns about events is parallel to when Michael becomes aware. This is a nice touch, as is the predictability factor, which is a mixed bag. For example, there is one death that is expected, some unexpected, and honestly one I thought I saw coming that didn’t happen (no spoiler alerts).

The cast is certainly not acting newbies, all having long histories in British productions, especially telly series. Most have been in similar shows from time to time, and I’m going to assume that many of them know each other from this work, as the British market – especially up north in Manchester – is probably limited to some extent. What I’m trying to say, is that the cast is stellar, playing nuanced performances that give credibility to the characters, no matter how outlandish the activities involved.

Sally Carman

The film also looks stunning. Camera work, lighting, and cinematographic framing are offset by a somewhat languid editing that draws the viewer in, rather than lingering too long to the point of distraction. It also reminds me a bit of Long Night in a Dead City, which was filmed around the same time in New England. Know that the accents here are thick as fleas and twice as chewy.

On some level this can be considered an organized crime genre, but there is way too much of body parts and moistness for this to be just your average crime caper. Also, it’s too controlled to be considered a slasher film, either. But know there is a nice body count, and a lot of body jus.

The ending is left wide open, I suppose for the possibility of a sequel, which I will also gladly eat up. The average film viewer may not want to have a meal before watching this, but if you’re a genre junkie like me, you’ll relish this over some White Castle (what’s the British equivalent?) and a cuppa… red wine.

Review: Trophy Heads

Text © Richard Gary / FFanzeen, 2018

Images from the Internet, unless indicated

Trophy Heads                                           

Produced and directed by Charles Band

Full Moon / MVD Video

87 minutes / 2014

www.fullmoonstreaming.com

www.mvdvisual.com

In general, I don’t believe that genre fan would really argue that the films from Full Moon Entertainment – and Charles Bands’ in particular – are as cheesy as they come. This has been true since the VCR revolution in the early 1980s. Silly scripts, sometimes questionable acting and amateurish effects not only dominated throughout the Full Moon catalog, but fuck, does Band know how to direct or produce films that make all of that work so well. The Puppet Master, Trancers and Subspecies series alone would be perfect examples, but then add in the likes of Sorority Babes in the Slimeball Bowl-O-Rama (1988), The Cannibal Women in the Avocado Jungle of Death (1989), and so many others; it’s not just a bunch of crazy films, but rather a canon of so-bad-it’s-good cinema that every horror aficionado should know.

I’ll be honest with you, I’ve seen most of the golden age Full Moon catalog from essentially the late ‘70s through the early ‘90s (yes, on VHS), renting them with glee as they came out. Not all of them were keen to me (e.g., Castle Freak [1995], by one of my fave directors, Stewart Gordon, who… sorry, I’m jumping the gun, so more on this later), but I would not miss out on my chances to experience them because they were so much fun. As I’m writing this, even more Full Moon films keep coming to mind, such as Meridian (1990).

Adam Noble Roberts

Anyway, I couldn’t help but smile and digress at this point, so let’s get back to the film at hand. Like the first Scream (1996), this is an incredibly self-referential a-nod’s-as-good-as-a-wink-to-a-blind-bat release, with a half-dozen of the ‘80s and ‘90s Scream Queens [SQ] playing some version of themselves in the present, being held captive by a basement-living nerd looney loser named Max (Adam Noble Roberts), and his over-indulgent, enabling, and equally crazy mom (the great Maria Olsen).

Max is concerned that the Queens of the movies he loves (Full Moon features are mentioned and shown, of course, such as Creepozoids; 1987) will be forgotten as they age, and insanely feels it’s his personal mission to capture them, and mount their heads so they will be forever remembered. Early on in the film, two of the SQ royalty get kidnapped: Linnea Quigley (here, Sister Quigley as she has bathed herself in the blood of Christ), and the seriously intelligent and deep voiced Brinke Stevens, as well as Lisa (Irena Murphy, who spends most of her time in the film topless). They are caged in Max and Mom’s basement, as the actresses’ own videos play, as well as the opening SQ’s death, Darcy DeMoss.

Michelle Bauer

Max and Mom have the SQs recreate a scene from one of their own films, no matter how poorly and inaccurate (a comment on the original films’ lack of aptitude?) and then uses that as a means to – err – immortalize them, in their own fashion. It’s actually weirdly and effectively creepy in that it’s not the characters that “die,” but these fictionalized versions of themselves. Some of the other SQs include the still lovely Michelle Bauer (always one of my faves in my own fanboy days), Denice Duff and later-SQ, Jacqueline Lovell.

These were the SQs of my youth, as it were, and Band is wise to find a way get them not only to have some new performances, but he also gets to promote his own Full Moon line, as most of these SQs were in his films, such as Head of the Family (1996) and some of the others mentioned above. Definitely a win-win situation for all involved, I would hope. Even the smaller roles are up and coming SQs in Full Moon flicks like the Evil Bong franchise (I’m not making that up).

Yes, there are also some stunning prerequisite cameos throughout the film. The one that will get a lot of notice is director Stuart Gordon (Re-Animator [1985], From Beyond [1986]) who plays a particularly obnoxious Harvey Weinstein-ish creepy version of himself (well, I hope it’s a version…), Carel Struycken (Lurch in the 1990’s Addams Family reboot) and the still lovely Kristen DeBell (Alice in Wonderland: An X-Rated Musical Fantasy from 1976; Meatballs in 1979). Another Full Moon director of cult classics, David DeCoteau, has a brief bit as well.

These versions of the cast come across as humorously vain and often self-centered, be it unapologetically self-motivated on one side of the spectrum, to overly religiously fanatical and trying to share Jeebus with the world on the other. Now, I’ve actually had the opportunity to meet some of them in my life (mostly at Chiller Theatre Cons; see pics below), and they came across as friendly to both their fans and each other. These cartoonish adaptations is more feeding to an audience who imagines that they are like their characters, than what these actresses have brought to the screen, not to mention a generation of teen boys.

Maria Olsen

Max and his mom are actually quite fun characters, and both actors fulfill their roles with glee, which transfers to the screen. Both actors have just the right amount of twitches and reactions that enhance the characters while both mocking them, and making them somewhat pitiable. Max is as much a cartoon stereotype of a fanboy as these SQs are to their on-screen personas as presented here. And it’s pretty obvious that Max is not playing with a full deck, as he has quite intense conversations with the post-decapitated and stuffed heads. And we hear not only them chide Max, but have conversations with each other.

Oh, did I happen to mention that this is a comedy? While I complained a bit about the writing of the earlier fare, this one is actually quite smart while still being just a bit goofy. It’s definitely a step up in that way, especially the dialogue. There are definitely some serious moments, but even those can be taken with a beer, if one is so inclined (I never drink…alcohol).

Each of the deaths is quite different and shot well. And what’s more this is extremely entertaining, whether you’ve seen the originals or not, or whether you’ve heard of the cast or not (though shame on you if you haven’t learned your horror history).

There are some weird moments that make no sense to me, such as Mom wearing white to drag a bloody body, or one SC actually pushing Max, and then rather than fighting and taking away the weapon, keeps on running. Yeah, this doesn’t make logic, but again, it’s a Full Moon feature, so yaz takez what yaz getz, and have fun with it.

Brinke Stevens
(pic by RBF)

One important thing that Full Moon brought to the home market video is that they were among the first to add “extras” to the ends of the VHS, usually in the form of a documentary called the “Videozone.” It should come as no surprise and a pleasant reward that they continue the trend with this film’s own “Videozone”; they even use the same opening graffix (but the digital noise cleaned up and it’s been updated a bit). For 10:16, this is an enjoyable Making Of featurette with most of the main characters discussing working on the set, talks with the director, and with each other. The 22-minute “Uncut Footage” is less interesting behind-the-shooting, including rehearsals, and conversations among Band and some of the SQs, among others.

Linnea Quigley(pic by RBF)

Next up is a “Submit Your Head” feature shows what I believe are some of the backers’ heads treated the same way as the SQs in the bloody, green frame for 2:52. Note that while they are shown one by one here, they are presented in groups at the end of the feature. Along with Audio Options (stereo and Dolby Surround), there are 8 trailers of classic Full Moon features, many among those mentioned in the film, as well as the one for this film.

Last up (though second on the list of extras options) is the full length commentary, consisting of the director Charles Band, and stars Brinke Stevens, Darcy DeMoss and Jacqueline Lowell. Between them actually just watching the film, they definitely tell some great anecdotes about their lives, the shoot, and little pieces of details that make the factoids fun (such as info about a particular mask Max wears).

Michelle Bauer(pic by RBF)

An argument could be made that the victims are all Scream Queens and not Kings, but let’s face it, yeah, it’s sexist as hell, but the these films in the ‘80s were geared towards horny teen boys who would obsess over the female rather than the male. I mean, during the “Videozone” and commentary, Band consistently refers to these actresses as “the girls,” which I found to be…uncomfortable. Good thing he made such an enjoyable movie.

If the film feels episodic, it should come as no surprise as this release started out as a 5-segment web series, but it folds together quite well, and the fact that here are distinct acts works for the film rather than against it, helping to keep the attention of the viewer without having that jump cut feeling. While I may have my issues with some of the gender aspects, as I said, the end result is an enjoyable and well-written piece.

Review: Him

Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2018

Images from the Internet

Him (aka The Devil’s Warehouse)

Directed by Luis Rodriguez

Wownow Entertainment / Delinquent Films / Blue Diamond Pictures / MVD Visual

85 minutes, 2016 / 2018

www.mvdvisual.com

Two quick aside musings before I delve in, and that is regarding the relationship between the film and the 2017 release of Stephen King’s IT, which was popular in the cinema recently, not to mention a cultural phenomenon; no, not with the story, but the zeitgeist of it all. This is mostly presumption on my part in that I don’t really know the facts one way or the other, but I’m a-gonna take a stab (pun intended) at it.

This film was originally released in 2016 as The Devil’s Warehouse, before the re-adaptation of the King novel. Rather, I believe Him’s creation was more a combination of the popularity of the likes of The Texas Chain Saw Massacre franchise, and perhaps even a bit of Captain Spaulding in the Rob Zombie House of 1000 Corpses (2003) and The Devil’s Rejects (2005) releases, mixed together with all the online videos of weird evil clown sightings all over the U.S.

That being said, I have total belief that the rerelease of this film in 2018, and especially the way it is retitled as Him, is completely related to the popularity of last year’s It. And, y’know what, I don’t have a problem with a reissue jumping on the wagon of a remake, and believe it to be a smart marketing move. Indie films truly need what help they can get!

Presenting a mostly Latino cast (felicitaciones!), the film’s prologue centers around a gringo businessman named Pearson (Paul Westbrook, who also wrote the music), who is definitely not having a good stretch. His home and car are being repossessed, and he’s losing his warehouse, where employees are leaving in droves anyway because of strange noises and laughs heard in darkened corners. In a second prologue that takes place a year later – and two months before the main story – two buxom young women showing mucho grande cleavage as often as possible (thank you) keep finding a Ouija board at the beach (?!). I’m not quite sure what this has to do with the main story, but there ya go.

One thing we quickly learn is that the focus of the haunting of the warehouse is, yes, a clown from (I guess, literally) hell, but this could have been as much based on the Annabelle (2014) franchise as the King book/film(s), due to an army of mysterious dolls that pop in and out, and not to mention a nod to Grave Encounters 2 (2012).

In the main part of the tale, six “paranormal investigators” – purely amateurs, I’m guessing, from their lack of scientific equipment, other than flashlights; though one is perhaps psychic – split evenly between men and women, break into the now long-deserted warehouse, where the sun never shines, but the hand-held LCD lights do. In other words, the film is literally dark, and sometimes hard to see, other than the bouncy spotlights.

Now, I know that the director has made a number of films, both shorts and full-length features over the past decade or so, but this truly looks, feels and practically tastes like a college class film. It may be because the cast has so few credits, but much of the acting is woodenly sketchy too often, and the writing is clumsy (“we’re paranormal in-VES-tigators!” is said more than once).

This sextet are anxious to see anything paranormal (a word that comes up very often), daring whatever spirits are there to make themselves known, but the second a doll shows up, they’re all scared shitless one moment, angry the next, and ready to blame each other for disappearances at the drop of a suggestion of anything actually happening. Yet, when they find a pool of blood after someone goes absent, they discuss what’s going on rather than trying to get the hell outta there. Their reactions are just too inconsistent.

Speaking of blood, etc., there is more cleavage than gore (again, thank you, even though no nudity, even with a shower scene); in fact, there is no real anything happening as far as contact other than grabbing. I’m not sure what this was rated, but I’m guessing PG-13 at best. Georgie’s stump in the opening act of IT has more viscera than anything here. And the languid pace, the darkness, the questionable editing (such as the group describing a body being dragged as it happens, before we get to see it, seemingly added in later), the stilted dialog, and the acting all work at not enticing its audience (i.e., in this case, me). There isn’t even a good jump scare. The clown does look cool, though; however, it does not resemble the box cover at all, which is actually fine as I like them both.

For me the biggest problem though is that I have no idea why the dolls, why the young evil girl, why the clown, etc. There are too many either unanswered or unclarified reasons for the events we are witnessing. In other words, it’s too abstract for clarity.

Now, this could have easily have been a found footage flick, but thankfully, the director chose another direction. For that, I am grateful. The attractive cast is also a plus.

The only extra is the chapter breakdowns, which are text with no images. Speaking of images, the last shot of the clown in the film looks like it was taken from somewhere in the middle, and strategically placed by the distribution company near the end so it can be the last image before the title of the film, again cementing the “we put this out to cash in on the new blockbuster.” But, you know what? Once again, I’m fine with it.

Review: Delusion

Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2018

Images from the Internet

Delusion

Written, produced and directed by Christopher Di Nunzio

Creepy Kid Productions

85 minutes, 2016

www.facebook.com/CreepyKidProductions/

Here is the truth: I watched this film last year, and wrote a review. Computers being computers, the Word file became corrupted, and the critique went bye-bye. I needed some time to regather before I watched the film again, and as life happens, I forgot about it. Well, one year and two weeks later, I gave it a second viewing. I’m glad I watched it again, because I caught things I missed the first time, having had time to process.

Technically, as the director informed me, Delusion is a “psychological thriller,” and while I don’t belabor the notion, I believe that’s an incomplete statement. There is also a metaphysical level that either takes it beyond the thriller concept, or perhaps is concurrent to it, but either way, it’s something that I like. Thrillers can be fun, and adding the supernatural to it definitely bumps it up a notch.

David Graziano

The plot is like a Buddy Holly song: on first listen, it’s a simple ditty that’s fun to sing along with, but then, when you dig a bit deeper, you see that the chord structures and rhythms are a bit more complex than you first realized; “Maybe Baby” is the example on my mind right now. Like that tune, our protagonist, Frank Parrillo (David Graziano), seems like a simple man (meaning uncomplex; he’s a software developer who telecommutes). He is middle-aged and lonely since his adored wife Isabella (Carlyne Fournier) had died mysteriously three years before. Then, a letter from her unexpectedly arrives in the mail, as he explains to his caring nephew, Tommy (Justin Thibault). Before her passing, he was a typical Eastern Massachusetts (Carver, about 45 miles south of Boston, though the film is shot in a 50 radius of Boston) lug who dismissed Isabella’s suggestions on serenity, but now he’s following her lead post-mortem, mediating and taking life as it comes.

Jami Tennille

He drops into a storefront psychic named Lavinia (Irina Peligrad) on a whim and she warns him of an evil surrounding him. Around this time, he meets a mysterious and scarred man named Grayson (Kris Salvi), and a beautiful (and age appropriate, I’m happy to say) woman who seems to be sashaying everywhere he is, named Mary (Jami Tennille). It’s no question these two are the nastiness Lavinia foretold. How can you tell? Not only do they smoke a lot, but they both draw on the cigarettes really hard. He tends to talk in riddles, and she essentially starts the conversation with “So, you want to fuck me?” Both turn up (at different times) unexpectedly in his home.

Okay, that’s about as much of the plot as I’m gonna give. Mixed in with the madness, there are flashbacks to conversations with his wife, leading up to some missing plot points, and contrasting with his relationship with Mary in the same way Tommy is the anti-Grayson. And that the spirit of Isabella is popping in and out is weighing in on Frank.

Irina Peligrad

Being “psychological,” the big question to ask is how much of this is meta-reality, and how much of it is in Frank’s noggin, considering he’s taking pills because of a breakdown at some point earlier. Plus, in a literary way, one can see the whole devil/angel-shoulder metaphor here, with Mary on one side, Isabella on the other, with Grayson and Lavinia trying to turn him one way or the other.

Despite the languid pace of the story and dialog, and the occasional arty nature of the visuals – and yes, dialog – the film actually is able to keep attention. There’s even a little bit of blood spilt here and there, again, sometimes real and sometimes metaphorical in a dream. Even with all the angles and the coloration of many of the shots, the level of abstraction is rarely high enough to be obtuse (other than occasionally with Grayson’s verbiage).

Kris Salvi

The film also begs the question just who is the titular delusional one? And just what is either delusion or is merely something beyond the knowing? In other words, like that Buddy Holly song, there are different levels to the film in which it can be viewed, but I do believe the deeper the viewer seeks the more satisfaction there is to be had.

Considering the relatively diminutive central cast members (with many smaller parts), there is a decent amount of mayhem to be seen, and even a bit of viscera thrown in to keep it even more interesting. While the few moments of gore are not necessary to the story in the long run, it certainly makes it satisfying for what is unfolding.

Carlyne Fournier and David Graziano

Most of the acting in the film is very “non-acting” and natural feeling, and it took me a while especially to get used to Graziano’s laissez-faire style of going with the flow, but it actually is more of an accomplished build-up of a character. There felt like real affection and chemistry between Graziano and Fournier, which helped the story. Personally, I thought Salvi was trying too hard, and actually would have been more effective to be looser rather than tenser, considering he’s the malevolent Loki or devil figure… or perhaps he’s actually a warning angel; I guess it’s up for interpretation.

The fact that it is debatable for discussion on who is good and evil, and who is delusional – and I would go as far as to say what the definition of delusion in this context is – shows a sharpness of the story and writing. The way the film is shot and the effects added to it (again, the occasional odd angles and hues), I would posit, puts the viewer into the possible delusional position as well.

If you’re looking for a slice-'em-up, even with minimal gore here, this is not for you. If you would like to take a break from that mindless splatter, or just want to think about what you’re looking at, this is a nice little micro-budget indie that stretches itself to fit that bill.