Review: The Long Dark Trail

Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2023
Images from the Internet

The Long Dark Trail

Directed by Kevin Ignatius; Nick Psinakis
Four Eighteen Films; El Jean Pictures; Cleopatra Entertainment; MVD Visual
78 minutes, 2022
www.Cleopatra-Entertainment.com
www.MVDVisual.com

More than just “Acts,” this appears to be two different films strung together into one story. It is an interesting idea, to say the least.

The backbone of the tale is teen brothers Jacob and the older Henry (the O’Donnell siblings, Brady and Carter, respectively). Stuck in poverty with their abusive alcoholic father, Duane (Michael Thyer), they all live in a one-room cabin in the middle of the woods in Northwestern Pennsylvania, isolated from anyone. In the pre-credits prologue, like the real-life Menendez brothers, they take actions to break away, leaving on their bicycles.

Brady O'Donnell and Carter O'Donnell

The brothers set off to Pithole City (yes, it is a real place; many towns in PA have odd names) to find their mom, Hannah (Trina Campbell), long gone due to Duane’s abuse. The first part of the film is their “coming of age” travels, a quest theme that is classical. There has been, and rightfully so, a comparison with Stand By Me (1986).

Broken up into numerous chapters, we follow the brothers as they obtain (steal) supplies and travel through various landscapes on their journey, from the natural like rocks and woods (filmed in Warren County, in the Allegheny National Forest), to man-made like rusted metal graveyards. The scenery is interesting in its ever-changing views. Through it all, Jacob keeps having supernatural visions, such as a reflection in a river smiling back at him (it is in the trailer).

For the most part, there are a lot of tense moments, such as ultra-violent flashbacks of daddy, but generally it starts as a very slow burn as we get to know the brothers and experience their lives through their eyes. And the occasional dream. The words haunting and moody come to mind in the first section, but that can also result in overdone artiness that is nice to look at, but does not necessarily move the story along or help with short attention spans. Honestly, in some parts, I watched at double speed with the captions on.

Michael Thyer

The deeper they get into the greenery, the more ritualistic symbols start showing up (think 1999’s The Blair Witch Project). The closer they get to Pithole City, the more the vision become gruesome and extraordinarily gory and bloody (thankfully). Images of a cult killing performed by a hooded Zeke (co-director Nick Psinakis) show that the brothers may be in for more than they bargained for, than just mommy dearest.

Speaking of which, it comes to a question of be careful what you wish for (or, in correct grammar: for what you wish; but I digress…). When they meet up, mom is in a vicious cult (Satanic? Other god[s]?) of all women, with Zeke at its head. And why are there no males? Well, that is where the violence comes in.

Nick Psinakis

I will not go into details here, but needless to say, in the final act, things get a bit dicey for the brothers dos. I understand how people can get sucked into cults (e.g., the Manson Family, the Heaven’s Gate, Jim Jones’ The People’s Temple, Scientology), but why this group exists and how scarred Zeke keeps control, is a mystery to me. Maybe that is why I am an Agnostic Atheist?

There is also an interesting soundtrack, including Bluegrass banjo music soundtrack, which I personally really enjoyed as a fan of the style since forever, but seemed oddly out of place for the northern-based film. Other music is off-beat singer-songwriter and, yes, moody and haunting dissonant instrumentalizations. Nearly all of the music is the output of the co-director, Kevin Ignatius. In fact, this is majorly a family affair, since there are a lot of Ignatiuses and Psinakises scattered through the credits. I respect that.

There is also some playing with time, with jumps of minutes, hours, or even days. On occasion, especially near the end, this is a bit jarring, but it is not hard to follow, so that is a strong plus.

Briefly, there are some extras on the Blu-ray. The first is the “Behind the Scenes/Blooper Reel” (4 min); it is okay, but nothing spectacular. Next is a featurette with “Artist R.L. Black” (2 min). Narrated by co-director Psinakis, he describes how Black’s work illustrated part of the end credit. Black’s work, by the way, is fantastic. Then there is the mostly behind the scenes Slideshow (3 min), this film’s Trailer, and a number of Cleopatra Entertainment brand trailers.

The ending is a bit unsettling for me, and not the direction I would have gone if I was in the shoes of the participants. But it is possible that this has been left as a cliff-hanger, either opening up the possibility of a sequel, or leaving it open ended for the viewer to decide. If there is a part two, I would be interested in seeing it.

IMDB listing HERE