Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2019
The basic premise is that Lewis (Wilson) had recently suffered a tragic
loss, and to get away from his pain, he picks up from Minneapolis and takes a respite in Round Lake, a real and little community in the middle of nowhere whose two claims to fame are the
story of the witch, which I will get into in a moment, and an actor that came
from there (yep, I mean Wilson). But as Harry Chapin sang, “You can travel on
10,000 miles and still stay where you are.” (“WOLD”).
This is smartly put together by director Faraj in the way that it plays
with the two natural and supernatural elements, putting it on us to try to
figure out which is which. Not a new premise, but when it’s handled well, as it
is here, it keeps the tension going.
It’s pretty easy to tell that this is shot on a budget somewhere
between little and none, but it also is a perfect example of how much can be
done with so little. Under the right circumstances, filmmaking is a collaborative
art form (e.g., without one member, such as directors like Kubrick, who demands
exactitude and subservience from his crew and cast; where would they be with a huge
budget?). With everyone involved giving their all for something that means
something to them,
The acting here is quite solid, as Wilson and Decker dance around each
other. Selby does the most work as two divergently difference characters (even
if from the same gene pool). Everyone else in the cast is consistent, and that’s
a good thing. Benjamin also does well as a strong woman who is smitten but not
desperate (as so many female characters are written to be). Time wise, Scott is
briefly there in her cameo role, so while she is fun to watch as always,
especially ringing the nostalgia bell, she shines and her intensity level is
set on high (I smiled through her performance).
Images from the Internet
Loon Lake
Directed by Ansel Faraj
Round Town Productions / Hollinsworth Productions / Three
Knots Entertainment / Indie Rights
95 minutes, 2019
As Kelly Erin Decker, one of the producers of this film explained in an
email to me, “My friend Nate [Nathan Wilson, who
also is the main protagonist of the story – RG] wrote the script based on a legend in the town [in Minnesota] where he
grew up, and we returned to that same town to film...”
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| Nathan Wilson and David Selby v.1 |
He rents a house and a few denizens at the bar tell him the story about
a local woman, Mary Jane (Decker, who uses the name credit as Kelly Kitko here)
who was beheaded as a witch in 1880 because she turned down the advances of the
local pastor (David Selby… wait she refuted Quentin Collins?!?!).
Anyway, a local woman, Gracie (Brittany Benjamin), has her eyes on Louis
but he is too distracted by his memories (Sierra Schermerhorn) … and the witch,
who’s grave he possibly crossed too many times. Y’see, the legend goes – in Candyman and Bloody Mary fashion – if you walk over Mary Jane’s grave three times, she will
come back to kill you in three days. But how much of it is “reality” and how
much of the events that follow are in Louis’s head? This delves from possible
supernatural to possible psychological, as we probe into Louis’s thoughts
through dreams, and his own anger. This kind of gives a possible double meaning
to the title of the film with Loon being both literal and figurative.
 |
| Kelly Kitko aka Kelly Erin Decker |
Another nice element to the story after the opening prologue, is that we
keep returning to the 1880s throughout the story, to fill in the legend and possible
history of events.
Religion plays a strong part in the story, and occasionally comes off
as a bit preachy as certain characters question their own faith (e.g., what if
there is no afterlife? Is there a God? Is there a Satan?) and those of others. While
not a central theme, it certain is prevalent in various parts of the story. As
someone who is non-religious, I was not bothered by it, but I was conscious of it.
From what I understand, the
director is a big fan of the original “Dark Shadows” television series (as was
I), and he often casts members of the show into his films. Here, as I
mentioned, he has not only David Selby playing dual roles as the Pastor and his
great-grandson, but the Pastor’s spouse is an enjoyable cameo by Kathryn Leigh
Scott (wait, Quentin Collins is reunited with Maggie Evans?!?!).
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| David Selby v2 and Kathryn Leigh Scott |
This film was shot with a limited budget and crew. As Decker put it, “We
had a total crew of 5 people (including me and Nate, who did double duty as
actors and various crew functions). Everything in the film comes from our
hearts and our hands, down to the loon models which I made myself.”
As I’ve said before, it’s important to look at small budget indie films
like this one through different eyes than blockbusters, or even those independents
with some cash flow like the Annabelle or even the Freddy/Jason/Michael franchises. There is a lot of ingenuity and heart that goes into
smaller films, and they usually deserve the love that is put into it. Yes, a
bad film is a bad film, but this one is quite impressive. It’s worth turning
your brain on, and giving it a thoughtful viewing.
PS: Please note that I did not have to look up any of
the names of the “Dark Shadows” characters.
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