Malevolent Ascent (2010) User Reviews

Wascavage in an elevator

[BandSAboutMovies · 4/10 · 12 June 2022]

David Wascavage makes two kinds of movies, both awesome. One side is silly monster movies, like Suburban Sasquatch, Fungicide and Zombies by Design. The other is deadly serious and something sinister is happening beyond the fabric of normal life like Tartarus and this movie. I'm a fan of pretty much everything he does and this one pushes his filmmaking the furthest I've seen in all of his films.

Seven normal people are on an elevator that crashes and leaves them trapped inside a building. As they get their bearings and try to figure out how to escape, they soon discover that one of them has no intention of seeing any of them survive.

You know, M. Night Shyamalan was also raised in eastern Pennsylvania (born in Mahé, India, and raised in Penn Valley, Pennsylvania) while Wascavage is from West Chester. This film reminds me of a Shymalan idea but with five-figure budget, cardboard sets and CGI that can't mean computer generated imagery, this lo fi auteur makes movies that I remember long after three or four what a twist Shyamalan movies have come in and out of theaters.

Damien Colletti is really great in this and brings the best acting I've seen in one of the director and writer's films. Speaking of greatness, this description on the director's site makes me want to watch this all over again: "A psychopath pursues victims throughout a collapsed mental hospital, as they learn that their survival and their very lives are struggles against the perils of life. Malevolent Ascent is a thrilling horror film that takes the viewer deep inside the bowels of a collapsed building, and personifies humanity's desperation to fight against the unknown."

I don't plan on getting on any elevators anytime soon.

Above average Indie Film with a great story.

[BlueMgc · 8/10 · 8 November 2010]

I was fortunate enough to see this film at Cinema 16:9 in Lansdowne, Pa last week - perfect for the forthcoming Halloween weekend. For a low- budget Independent Film, it had some interesting "pros" and cons, particularly the unique and impressive talent of the lead actor who played "Damon", Damien Colletti. I was impressed with the scary character he created and brought to life on the screen. I know this was shot several years ago and only released now, so I feel that if Damien did it now, he would play the character even better, because I've seen his more recent work. I also enjoyed Steve Kurtz who played "Gerald' in the film, in a very believable fashion. Some of the CGI was very impressive, although at times some of it was somewhat weak. Overall an above average Indie Film with a great story that exceeded my expectations.

Good script, great lead actor, poor cast quality

[SnowyHome · 7/10 · 21 December 2010]

This film has a very interesting script with an insanely strange lead character brought to life by the intense, energetic and believable acting of Damien Colletti. Unfortunately, the quality of Damien's acting is not supported by the cast who seem as though they have never acted before with the exception of Art Lyle and Todd Stuckley who give a believable and credible performances. The director is known for his comic horror films and this is his first venture into the world of serious horror. It is a good beginning (except for the casting). It is an interesting and intense script. While I have seen Damien playing forceful characters like Damon, a recent review of the film suggested that Damien was instructed by the director to deliver his lines in a choppy, Gollum-like manner. How unfortunate. Yet even with this restriction Colletti's acting skills manage to surpass the mis- directed vocal style and Colletti's own fierce, totally believable, and frighteningly insane characterization explodes on the screen in several scenes of sheer brilliance. The film would be very flat due to the overall acting in the cast despite the well-written dialogue without the alternately restrained and which explodes into lethal ferocity of the lead character which moves the film along to its climax and make it worth viewing. The CGI, especially in the color-charged scene near the end of the movie, is brilliant. Various other CGI scenes are less riviting; but there is enough of real quality CGI to make this film well-worth seeing. I have been a reviewer for various newspapers on the Eastern Coast. This is the first horror film I have reviewed. I've only done so because I feel the writer/director has done himself and his film a great diservice by not giving his script and his lead actor the supporting cast needed to make this film rate higher than a 7.