As part of Horrible Imaginings Film Festival’s Saturday offerings, a smattering and a half of shorts were available for viewings split into a few blocks and attached to the features playing that day. Here are a few highlights from these.
Author Archives: Emilie Black
Bong of the Living Dead (2017) [Horrible Imaginings Film Festival 2018]
A group of stoner friends finds themselves and their zombie knowledge tested when the apocalypse hits and the dead walk the Earth.
Written by Max Groah and Tim Mayo with Groah directing, Bong of the Living Dead is a fun and funny take on the zombie apocalypse and on friends with odd skills managing to do better than most. Their take on the sub-genre is one that doesn’t bring a ton of new things to the table but their vision uses things that are familiar in great ways. On a smaller scale, it reminds of Shaun of the Dead in that the filmmakers and cast have a clear love of zombies and zombie films and they bring it to the screen here in a manner that is entertaining and respectful of the films they clearly adore. The writing is clever and the direction keeps everything tight.
A Selection of Shorts from Horrible Imaginings Film Festival 2018 Day 1 [Horrible Imaginings Film Festival 2018]
As is now traditional, Horrible Imaginings Film Festival played a boatload of short films as part of their programing this years, all highly curated and of great quality. As those shorts are many and all were good, it was hard to make a selection of some of them. Here are mini-reviews for a selection of those shorts from day 1, Friday.
Interview with J. Larose, and Ashley Smith, the stars of “Extremity”
J. Larose and Ashley Smith appear in the recently released horror film “Extremity” (perfect for Halloween and available on demand!). The pair of stars took a few minutes to answer our questions about production, and their careers.
The God Inside My Ear (2017) [Philadelphia Unnamed Film Festival 2018]
After breaking up with her boyfriend during an unusual dinner, Elizia starts having visions and hearing voices. As she navigates this new way of life, she discovers more about herself and the world she lives in.
Female Filmmaker Friday: Braid (2018) [Philadelphia Unnamed Film Festival 2018]
A woman living in her imaginary world of her own making received a visit from two old friends on the run from the law and looking for easy money and as well as an easy way out. Turns out, going home may not yield the results they were aiming for.
Writer/director Mitzi Peirone creates a story here that is strong yet somewhat vague on some fronts and very hard to explain without giving too much away. What she creates with Braid is something that pulls the viewer in and doesn’t let them go until the end of the credits. Her works in writing and behind the camera are perfectly paired and create a world of its own on the screen. The characters she creates are complete and complex while not putting all the cards on the table at any point. This leads to a mysterious atmosphere and an odd flow to the story that work perfectly in this film.
The Witch in the Window (2018) [Philadelphia Unnamed Film Festival 2018]
A divorced father takes his son to a house he’s bought to renovate and reconnect. As they work on the house, something there is showing itself, adding a few layers of fear and oddity to what is already going on.
Writer/director Andy Mitton takes themes of connection, family, letting go, and even grief and mixes them with his own personal take on the haunted house tropes. As the viewer follows along, the film takes these tropes and makes them their own while also not fully committing to being a haunted house film. The film feels more like a psychological film than a straight up scary one.