Day 210: Absentia

Absentia

Check out my manicure! Now!

After watching over 200 hundred movies, I feel like I've seen just about every trick in the horror book. Sure, the details change, but most tend to follow similar patterns, or action, or overall themes; monster shows up, people die, hero fights the monster, hero either lives or dies. The end. Roll credits. It's such a pleasant and refreshing surprise to see an independent horror movie that tries do be unconventional. Of course, being unconventional does not necessarily make it good. It requires a unique story, solid acting, and good overall horror.

Absentia is a 2011 horror movie starring Katie Parker (Cut, Scare Dares) as Callie and Courtney Bell (American Marriage, Scare Dares) as her sister Tricia. Callie has finally kicked her drug habit and has come to live with Tricia after spending years on the road. Tricia is pregnant, but when Callie asks about the father, she avoids getting into specifics. Tricia's husband Daniel has been missing for 7 years without any sign of returning. Detective Ryan Mallory (Dave Levine, Space Guys In Space, Asylum) has been working on the case and have grown close to Tricia. After waiting for many years, Tricia files paperwork to declare Daniel 'dead in absentia'. Tricia has strange hallucinations of Daniel, as if he is trying to reach out to her. During a morning run, Callie goes through a tunnel and comes across a sick man named Walter. He is shocked that she is able to see him and runs away. She returns at night and leaves food at the tunnel. She is shocked to find all sorts of trinkets and items in her bed. With some convincing by Callie, Tricia decides to finally move into a new place and decides to openly date Det. Mallory. On their date, Daniel reappears, showing signs of abuse and malnourishment. He is unable to say where he has been other than “underneath”. One night, Callie finds a terrified Daniel in her room, claiming that something has found him. She hears a chirping sound and goes to investigate. She is knocked out by some sort of creature and when she comes to, Daniel is once again missing. The next day, the man Callie met named Walter is found horribly mutilated outside the tunnel. Callie begins to piece together all the disappearances over the years from the neighborhood and discovers that they all have something to do with that tunnel. What ancient secrets does the tunnel hide and what does it mean for Callie and Tricia?

For the last time, I'm not Jessica Alba!

Despite being an independent movie funded through Kickstarter, Absentia comes off as a big budget horror movie. I don't mean in terms of special effects or big stars, but in the quality of the story and acting. The movie doesn't suffer from being an “indie” movie with wacky, off-beat characters or uncomfortable awkward scenes that serve no purpose. You know what type of movies I mean. Written and directed by Mike Flanagan, Absentia is able to produce a very believable and real-world story with a dash of horror. That dash is just enough to keep things thrilling and interesting. There aren't many scares in the movie, but it relies on old-school horror techniques to get the audience jumping. Despite the lack of blood and violence, the movie makes up for it with sinister implications that create psychological terror.

Absentia is, at it's heart, a simple story. The story itself is told in such a way that we have a hint of what happens, then it jumps forward to after the action and then we find out what happened. I assume this was a money-saving strategy and it doesn't hinder the story, but they used this trick more than once, making it too obvious. Unfortunately, we never get to see what is kidnapping people, only brief flashes. The background isn't really discussed either, which is disappointing because I really wanted to know just what was going on. What is it? Where does it come from? Why are people being kidnapped? I don't need everything laid out for me, but a little more information would have made the movie that much better. The acting is pretty good throughout, helped by believable dialogue.

If this guy were any paler, he'd be Mitt Romney

Absentia comes close to greatness, but just barely misses. There isn't a specific reason as it has some very good moments, but, for me, it just doesn't go far enough. I would have liked a little more information on the creature's background and more action. I suppose their were budget constraints, but a few minutes of dialogue doesn't cost that much. There are some decent scares and the mystery is enticing enough to keep the audience's attention. It is nice to see a quality independent movie with actors and actresses that may not have big name recognition, but have the solid acting ability to make the movie entertaining. Absentia is a good movie and I look forward to more work from Mike Flanagan.

7.5/10

Day 167: YellowBrickRoad

YellowBrickRoad

Oh, it has an ending...

I don't like The Blair Witch Project. I had very little interest in it when it came out. Why I applaud their ability to get a huge buzz and “go viral” before going viral meant having lots of people watch a Youtube video of something getting hit in the balls, it just didn't appeal. I didn't understand what the big deal was about people getting lost in the woods and “found footage”. Come on, they're not going to show a movie in theaters across the country if people actually died. When the movie came to cable, I finally watched it and all my feelings towards the movie were confirmed. It was boring, rudderless, and annoying. By the end, I was cheering for the witch to kill them before someone screamed about that goddamn map again. Perhaps if the movie had a bigger budget, a deeper story and, you know, actors, maybe I would have liked it. Today's review explores just that; Does a bigger budget, story, and proper acting make a “lost in the woods” movie better?

YellowBrickRoad is a 2010 horror movie starring Michael Laurino as Teddy Barnes and Anessa Ramsey (The Signal, Footloose) as his wife Melissa. In the 1940's, the entire population of Friar, New Hampshire left town and walked up a winding trail leading into the woods. They left everything behind and were never found, leaving one survivor who was left a rambling, incoherent madman. Teddy and Anessa decide to find the trail in hopes of discovering new evidence and shedding light on what happened to the town. They are joined by their friend and colleague Walter, mappers Erin and her brother Daryl Luger, Jill the intern, and Cy Banbridge, a local forester. Their information about the trail falsely leads them to a movie theater, where a worker named Liv agrees to bring them to the trail if they let her come along. Liv takes them to the trail, marked by a rock with “Yellow Brick Road” written on it. The trip starts off well enough as the group travels deep into the woods. Walter is videotaping each crew member to ensure they still have their mental faculties. As the trip progresses, they begin to hear big band music blaring from an unknown source. At first, the group enjoys it, but it begins to wear on them. The group begins to break down and things come to a head when Daryl brutally murders his sister Erin all because she took a hat that he found. Death follows the group along with the inexplicable music. Will they reach the end of the trail and what will be waiting for them?

This would be considered an "action" shot

It's easy to compare YellowBrickRoad with The Blair Witch Project, but YBR has an interesting back story, better acting, and some creative ideas. The audience is interested in seeing what happens because the initial story of the townspeople disappearing is legitimately interesting. The first half of the movie holds our attention because of this, but unfortunately it's not enough to keep us interested. The movie stretches on for far too long with very little happening. Sure there are a few scenes of violence, but any true horror fan won't bat an eye at the killings or gore. The acting is good considering nothing really happens for most of the movie. In The Blair Witch Project, I was cheering for the witch to kill the annoying characters. In YellowBrickRoad, I was cheering for something to happen.

My biggest issue with the movie (other than being incredibly boring) is the ending. YellowBrickRoad was clearly made on the cheap and emphasizes imagination over action. That only goes so far and isn't enough to sustain an entire movie, especially when the payoff is so bad. They tried so hard to be clever and edgy and failed miserably. It's like they watched one too many episodes of Twin Peaks and said “Hey, the audience has suffered through this, let's totally fuck them over with an ending that makes no sense and will mess with their minds!” While the usage of random music playing is interesting and the weak connections to Wizard of Oz keep us on our toes, there's no real payoff to any of it. It was all a misdirection to keep the audience from walking out of the theater or watching something else.

Yeah, that's pretty much how I feel

Despite having a bigger budget, a more complex story, and better acting, YellowBrickRoad is just another “lost in the woods” movie. The acting is good and the scenery is very nice to look at. The movie has a few good ideas and for the first half, I was legitimately interested in what was going to happen. The movie fell apart when it was apparent that nothing of note was going to occur and I was even going to get some violence to keep me entertained. It became a chore to watch and the ending was infuriatingly bad. It didn't come out of left field, it came out of another park. I feel bad for anyone that paid money to see this movie. YellowBrickRoad is simply not worth your time.

3/10