Sunday, July 7, 2019

Review: Horror Shorts for July 2019

Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films
Images from the Internet

Garden of Souls
Directed by Christopher Milewski
Filmiracle Productions
16:11 minutes, 2019
When I was a mere wisp of a lad in the days before VHS, I was such a horror movie geek that I bought an 8mm projector and some 200-400’ reels of silent film delights, such as Nosferatu (1922), and some starring Lon Chaney, Sr. I still have them, though the projector is long gone. When VHS came about, being that these same films were in copywrite underdrive, I was able to get them for cheap, but this time I could see the full movies. I fell in love with the style and the manner of acting; but I especially loved the lighting and tinting. Since the digital era, I can only recall one film that used some of these techniques successfully (Creep Creepersin’s Frankenstein, 2009), which employed it more for occasional affects. For Garden of Souls, director Milewski creates a love letter to those kinds of early films, using some modern techniques to achieve it. Being created in the present, even with the added scratches, the picture is quite clear (a good thing) and the tint is just perfect. What’s also a delight is that he doesn’t overdo it while still being consistent. In the story, a grieving widow (Karen Lynn) makes a pact with an elderly witchy woman (Betty Roehm Widdoss) to try and raise her deceased husband (Eric Bower) from the grave. While I was expecting an extended “The Monkey’s Paw” result, Milewski takes it in another direction. While silent, there is some excellent period-style music that is used to enhance the visuals. This is well written, directed and enjoyable from first to last frame.

Phantoms of the Fog
Directed by CM Lazer  (aka Christopher Milewski)
Filmiracle Productions
11:37 minutes, 2018
Milewski plays mix and match with genres on this one, mashing up three (I will only discuss two because I don’t want to ruin the ending). An American soldier (Ryan Fargo) is dropped far behind the enemy lines in Viet Nam (yes, I heard of it), when in total gonzo Leo Fulci style, he starts being hunted by a mud-plastered zombi with a scarf! (Karen Lynn), requisite with lots of meal worms on its face. But things keep shifting from minute to minute on the danger levels. The music is right out of Goblin style with an annoying synth (just like the Italian cinema of the ‘80s). Will our hero escape the creature’s grasp? Milewski is really good at keeping a shot long enough to establish what is happening, without quick and zoomy edits so you can see the action. Adding three mashups rather than two works for the film. Good framing of the shots, as well.



The Tattooist
Directed by Michael Wong
Michael Wong Productions
1:20 minutes, 2018
vimeo.com/michaelwong
Michael Wong is an award-winning Malaysian film and commercial director based in Beijing. His work employs a high level of graphics and editing in his releases (check out more than just this film, especially “ARC ‘Fantasy Realm’,” available at the link above), and this works really well for this very short but very effective film. Full of swirling images, music and editing, there is no dialogue or context as we are introduced to a tattoo artist who is also a violent serial killer. In this brief span we see a number of his killings and the action is brutal and swift. Beautifully done. Now I want to see a full feature of this.
Here is the link to The Tattooist:http://www.vimeo.com/michaelwong/thetattooist/

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