Tag: thriller

Wretch

Film Review by Holly R. LaFavers

WRETCH is a psychological horror film produced by Thoughfly Films in Louisville, Kentucky. This film horror film is about a drug-induced night that takes place in the woods, where three friends are confronted with themes of jealousy, guilt, fear, sexual desires, and a luring supernatural presence that begins to haunt them throughout the movie. Credits for this film include a written and directed screenplay by Brian Cunningham, production by Nic Brown, Janel Nash, and Brian Cunningham, and starring Spencer Korcz, Megan Massie, and Riker Hill.

If you are a fan of psychological horror, I guarantee that you like enjoy this film from start to finish.

The first five minutes of the movie lures you in with two of the main roles Abby and Caleb standing outside in darkness, Abby with blood covered mouth and shirt, Caleb questioning her…what in the hell happened…uhhh how did she get outside in that situation….etc. The movie takes a plot twist in the first half with it being filmed in a hidden footage or documentary style perspective, and then later switches to a long shot view in the latter half. Abby, Caleb, and Riker are introduced early on as main and supporting actors, as well as a luring, tall, mythical monster that plays the antagonist though out the film.

Wretch contains themes that I enjoy from a good psychological horror film like sex, drugs, and mental instability. Abby, played by Megan Massie, starts to develop bizarre symptoms and behaviors that disturb her sleep, enter her home, and follow her, as she starts drawing this swirly red symbol with methodic glazed over eyes. Caleb, her boyfriend, played by Spencer Korcz, becomes confused, jealous, and hurt throughout the film when he recognizes a connection between Riker, their pothead friend, played by Riker Hill. Wretch peeks more of the audiences’ interest during the second half of the film because horror elements (like blood & gore) are introduced as the story between the friends unfold.

In conclusion, I really enjoyed Wretch, and I would give it comparable references to other horror films like “Slenderman”, “It Follows”, and “The Villiage”. I believe that Kentucky fans will appreciate the fact that the entire movie was filmed in the state, using locations at may be familiar to those living in or near Louisville. I also believe that horror fans of this genre will be pleased with the creativity and plot twist at the end, which is figuring out what the monster or this supernatural creature is and/or means.

I suggest you give it a go and support indie horror!!!! Just keep note that I would not recommend under 18 to watch, as it contains adult themes and nudity.

Continue reading “Wretch”

Brian Cunningham SF12 E20

Tonight Wes and co-host Holly welcome Brian Cunningham, the writer and director of the recently released feature film “Wretch”.

Wretches plot outline goes “In an attempt to piece together fractured memories of a drug-fueled night in the woods, three friends confront guilt, jealousy, and a supernatural presence that threatens to expose their true natures.”

We find out many details of the filming from behind the camera, and get to know what drives Brian forward as an independent film producer.

thoughtflyfilms | WRETCH
In an attempt to piece together fractured memories of a drug-fueled night in the woods, three friends confront guilt, jealousy, and a supernatural presence that threatens to expose their true natures.
Wretch
Wretch. 4,869 likes · 187 talking about this. A new horror/thriller from ThoughtFly films. It’s getting closer.

 

Split

Movie Review by Wes Forsythe

Since the movie Glass has hit theaters, I decided it was high time to watch 2016’s Split.Just in case you are totally out of the loop, those movies are part of a trilogy that started with Unbreakable 19 years ago: yes, 19 years ago. Apparently M. Night Shyamalan doesn’t get in a hurry. Ironically, neither do I apparently as I am just now getting around to watching it.

The neatest thing about Split was that, assuming no one told you, you didn’t realize that it was a sequel to Unbreakable until Bruce Willis appears at the end of the movie wearing his poncho. I just realized that if you haven’t seen Unbreakable then this all has no meaning to you whatsoever.

In other words you wouldn’t know this psychological horror thriller is also a  superhero movie unless you saw Unbreakable (or at least read the Wikipedia page).

Regardless…good film…stands alone well.

The movie follows the exploits of one crazy bastard with a couple of dozen personalities. Through his interactions with his doctor, we even get glimpses of how the personalities are so independent of each other that they barely even speak to each other which is how I would probably want it if I had a few extra personalities…or just had to be around people more often.

James McAvoy plays Kevin. Kevin is our crazy bastard antagonist. Playing a crazy bastard with the mother of multiple personalty disorders has to be an actor’s dream! At least one of the personalities is even a woman and James absolutely rocks it.

I was struck by James sporting the same bald head as he did in the X-men movies. It’s like the poor guy can’t get a break. Totally not relevant to this discussion.

Anyhow, one of Kevin’s personalities kidnaps three girls because of of his other personalities said to, and it’s off to the races.

What I liked most about the movie was that because it relies on the thriller aspect and devices so heavily, that my wife didn’t have to spend much time covering her eyes. She doesn’t like a lot of gore.

And I will confess that as we learn the backstory of our protagonist, Anya Taylor-Joy as Casey, a teenage girl with a traumatic past and a history of disciplinary problems, I squirmed a time or two. Her back story is arguably as traumatic as the events unfolding with our crazy bastard.

All of the ancillary characters performances made sense both to the plot and to how real people would act in a similar situation. So often horror movies let characters go off the rails to advance the story. Not here: everything and everything is “tight”.

So if you’re looking for a good download or DVD to watch, and you don’t require wall to wall blood splatter, definitely give Split a look…especially before you see Glass…in theaters now.

Jessica Paige York and Chris Maggard SF12 E5

On tonight’s episode Wes gives us a one-two punch with two great guests, Jessica Paige York and Chris Maggard. Both are from the upcoming paranormal horror film Rosa Leigh, filmed on location at the reputedly haunted Poasttown Elementary School near Cincinnati, Ohio.

Jessica Paige York is a Lexington native who began her acting career in church and school plays as early as kindergarten. She spent a few years in New York City appearing in various student and independent films before returning to Kentucky. In Rosa Leigh, she plays one of the four paranormal investigators that is drawn to explore the school only to find more than she bargained for. Though she didn’t witness any paranormal activity, she admits filming at Poasttown was a scary experience. Jessica tells us how working on Rosa Leigh has fueled her desire to work further in the horror genre and gives us some insight on the tight knit film community within the local area. Her next project is a more family oriented film appropriately titled Ghost in the Family, currently touring several local film festivals and even winning the Best Family Film award at one of them.

Chris Maggard is one of the first people Wes met in the paranormal field and is the director, writer, and all around jack-of-all trades on the Rosa Leigh movie. Chris spent several years as a production assistant and working on various paranormal reality documentaries before making the move to feature films. Chris and Wes discuss the key dynamic of having good sound in your movies and the challenges of the film making process from start to finish. Chris also stresses the importance of having a good crew behind you, making sure you have all of your legal factors (such as copyrights) ironclad, and always having contingencies in place in case things can go south while filming. Chris is very passionate about the Rosa Leigh project and is highly appreciative of all of the people that helped make it possible. He also teases some cool biblical symbology Easter Eggs within the movie.

We also see the beginnings of Wes’ Winter Beard and hear that he will be appearing and doing Really Bad Tarot Card Readings at the Paranormal Super Con on Nov 3, hosted at none other than the Poasttown Elementary School. Is this some sort of cosmic alignment? Only Rosa Leigh knows…..