Bet on Odd: Oddity (2024) Review

Director: Damian Mc Carthy

Notable Cast: Carolyn Bracken, Gwilym Lee, Tadhg Murphy, Caroline Menton, Jonathan French, Steve Wall, Joe Rooney

 

Oddity is a film chock full of elements that could easily go wrong. Despite a solid trailer and the backing of both Shudder and IFC Films to validate its content, it’s just a film filled to the brim with off-kilter aspects that, in the wrong hands, could immediately take the film deep into the uncanny valley. 

 

There are twins, a giant wooden monster doll, a psychic that collects haunted objects, and one of the main characters is the doctor at a mental illness facility. On paper, those could quickly go awry. I’ve seen a handful of movies with just one of those things that careen a film off the cliff and straight into unintentional comedy. I suppose that’s to be expected with a title like Oddity.

 

Yet, through and through, writer and director Damian Mc Carthy manages to breeze through the uncanny valley and straight into a film showcasing what it means to ‘thread the needle.’ Oddity is slathered in wild jump scares and terrifying tension. Its limited budget is a benefit in crafting what might translate to a theatrical stage very efficiently as a chamber horror, and the film creeps so cleverly into one’s psyche that it lingers well after the credits roll. Not unlike Mc Carthy’s previous film, Caveat. 

 

Don't Touch That Dial: Late Night with the Devil (2023) [Telluride Horror Show 2023]

Directors: Cameron Cairnes, Colin Cairnes

Notable Cast: David Dastmalchian, Laura Gordon, Ian Bliss, Fayssal Bazzi, Ingrid Torelli, Rhys Auteri, Georgina Haig, Josh Quong Tart, Christopher Kirby, Steve Mouzakis, Gaby Seow, Michael Ironside

 

A dedication to the gimmick is always a welcome change of pace from the usual mainstream, overly noted-film fodder. Late Night with the Devil, the latest film from directors Cameron and Colin Cairnes, is absolutely dedicated to its gimmick.

 

It starts like a documentary about a fictionalized 70s late-night talk show host Jack Delroy. Then, it quickly becomes a “lost” television show episode where wild, horrific events happen to Jack and his guests. It’s found footage to a certain degree, but the choices around replicating the style of a 70s late-night show fully embrace the gimmick to an impressive end. Embracing its style with vigor while delivering a building tension and underpinned dramatic sadness makes Late Night with the Devil one of those cinematic experiences that sticks with you. 

 

Does its narrative always make sense with its intentional style choices? No, but goddamn, is the ride for Late Night with the Devil worth taking. 

 

Mad, Mad World: When Evil Lurks (2023) Review [Telluride Horror Show 2023]

Director: Demián Rugna

Notable Cast: Ezequiel Rodríguez, Demián Salomón, Silvina Sabater, Virginia Garofalo, Emilio Vodanovich, Luis Ziembrowski, Paula Rubinsztein, Feerico Liss, Marcelo Michinaux

 

When Terrified appeared on Shudder six years ago, I would have placed writer and director Demián Rugna as THE artistic voice to watch in horror. That movie, with all its flaws, scraped my bones with its tension and conceptual horrors. Indeed, it is the kind of statement film that should have had Rugna on the shortlist to direct every horror film for any studio project. 

 

Although I’m sure he was on that list, he took approximately six years to release his next feature-length film. Of course, he did have a segment in the recently released Satanic Hispanics anthology film, but the man took his time dropping his follow-up When Evil Lurks. Waiting to see this effort was almost as tense as watching Terrified.

It was absolutely worth the wait.

 

When Evil Lurks is the horror film to beat this year. And, if I’m being perfectly honest When Evil Lurks is the kind of horror that beats up its viewers too. While its “evil entity” is treated like a biological infestation, the combination of folk horror elements within a possession film is impressively navigated. All the while, Rugna and his team deliver some of the most brutal sequences since the French Extreme movement of the 2000s. When Evil Lurks is the kind of horror film that pulverizes its audience’s nerves and stomach in all the best ways. 

 

Control, Alt, Delete: Resurrection (2022) Review

Director: Andrew Semans

Notable Cast: Rebecca Hall, Tim Roth, Grace Kaufman, Michael Esper, Angela Wong Carbone

 

At this point, is there any performer in cinema that exemplifies the horrors of trauma seeping to the surface of one’s cracking psyche like Rebecca Hall? It was only last year that Hall partnered up with horror maestro David Bruckner for the supernatural holds of depression and ripples of suicide in The Night House. That was a film that lingered with me for months afterward in a way that tickled the membrane under my skin. 

 

When Resurrection was announced, bringing Hall back to tackle another round about the effects of a problematic relationship that unravels in the wake of its demise, naturally, the film was immediately put onto the viewing queue.  You should too. Resurrection, despite its bland title and an overall synopsis that feels more mundane than it is, marks another descent into a psychological terror that is worthy of discussion and dissection. A blend of classic themes around “are they are they not insane” with sharp writing that benefits the strength of its cast, Resurrection is a film seething in its own frames and will leave its audience doing the same.