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Primal Screen (2017)
Takes Us Right Into The Uncanny Valley
Primal Screen, (Episode 1, entitled The Wooden Boy) attempts to explore some of the more haunting imagery of pop culture influences that children have been exposed to and examines how it affected their growing minds. By focusing on a couple of very specific pop culture references experienced by three individuals growing up in the 70's, the documentary persuades the viewer to look back into their own pasts and examine the pop culture artifacts that may have left some dark impressions on their youth.
The 1978 movie entitled Magic, starring Anthony Hopkins, is heavily concentrated upon throughout the feature, as its television aired preview was something that stuck out in the minds of the young people who saw it. Specifically, the experiences of three individuals are shared with us through the narrative and visual reenactments. Ventriloquist dummies, and dolls in general, provide some of the narrative focus in addition to the movie, Magic. The movie's ultimate psychological premise is paralleled with the inferences made throughout the documentary, leaving us with a chilling conclusion that only begs further contemplation.
What I personally found most interesting about this Primal Screen short is the commonality of experience for children of the late 70s. What the narrators describe in their personal accounts is sharply similar to my own, which only adds to the overall impact for me. The main focal element of this brief study is the creeping fear associated with insentient human forms. It even highlights the phenomenon as it is represented in terms of psychology and sociocultural concepts.
The concepts touched upon here include automatonophobia and what is referred to in the field of aesthetics as the uncanny valley. Automatonophobia is the morbid fear of replicated humanoid forms, such as ventriloquist dummies, animatronic creatures, wax statues, or any inanimate object that simulates a sentient being. What the uncanny valley refers to is that eerie, uneasy feeling that occurs in a person at the moment a humanoid figure is perceived to be unreal by its observer. The uncanniness is the unease and feelings of dread that builds in a person when they notice the strangeness of an object that is all at once both familiar and detached. The valley refers to that moment between recognition of a thing that seems familiar and the understanding that it is somehow not right, which leads to a dip in positive emotional response.
While taking us into the the three narrators' own experiences with the onset of this specific phobic reaction through the perceptive point of the uncanny valley, we are drawn into a better understanding of how pop culture and social interactions through childhood can affect our lives in very formative ways. It is therefore, a vivid psychological and sociocultural observation of how fear may shape us.
I think so much more could be touched on and explored on this topic, so I do hope that Shudder decides to make more episodes - though I don't hold out much hope for this since the one and only episode was released in 2017. That being said, though this episode is only 27minutes long, it does a really good job of drawing the audience in and leaving you to ponder your own fears that have come up through childhood and pop culture. I highly recommend this one.
As a side note, The writer of this documentary short, Rodney Ascher , is also the writer and director of the 2012 documentary Room 237, which explores various interpretations of Stanley Kubrick's horror film, The Shining (1980). I've seen that one also and believe it to be really well made. It's a lengthier production than Primal Screen at 103 minutes and really highlights the creative documentary talents of Ascher.
We Go On (2016)
Pay Attention To This One, It Will Surprise You
This is a story about a man who is gripped with terror over the thought of dying. Unable to let go of the death of his father and suffering from increasingly worsening phobias that keep him from experiencing a healthy and normal adult life, Miles becomes fixated on learning what happens when people die. He points himself on a path of active discovery, searching intently for some existing proof that we do in fact go on in some way after death.
He's not particular on how we go on; he simply wants to know that there is something beyond this life. This is in stark contrast to his mother's view, which is that we simply cease to exist once dead. Determined to find the truth and to set his debilitating fears to rest, he uses money from an inheritance to place an ad offering a 30k dollar payout to anyone who can show him definitive proof of life after death.That's the premise.
The story follows Miles on his quest, as he filters through various claims of paranormal knowledge and meets a variety of people who claim to have the answers that he is seeking. Through this journey, we are let in on the motivations and methods of individuals vying for the reward money that Miles has offered up.
For a good portion of the weeding out process that Miles undertakes, he has the support of his mother who also drives him to meet people since Miles has trouble being behind the wheel of a car. She is a skeptic, but also very protective of her son. She uses her presence like a watchdog when her son is interacting with people who claim to have the proof he seeks.
It's obvious that she doesn't want anyone taking advantage of her son, but it also becomes quite frustrating the way she tends to constantly interrupt potential progress in her son's search. You begin to get a feeling that she doesn't want him to find the answer.
This movie plays like a drama at first, giving some relationship insights, some backstory that helps the audience understand the main character and his psychology better, and giving us the feeling that we're being taken along on a journey of soul seeking self discovery. It has more of a spiritual feel to it than a paranormal one. ..at first.
Then, a little ways into the story, it morphs into the more paranormal feel. It begins to sprinkle in some eerie ambiance and heart thumping suspense.
The actor who plays Miles is quite convincing in his fear. The close ups of his face during the more emotional moments do a good job of pulling you into the moment with him. Once the story really gets where it was leading all the time, you realize this in fact is more of a thriller with some real jump scare horror moments. Those moments don't come off as cheap, however, just for the sake of having them; they actually feel organic and almost peripheral at the point of realization.
The film fosters a surreal sort of mood that is captured in the way the camera interacts with the characters. It gives a feeling of realism. It subtly convinces you that this is the way such things would be perceived by a person in reality who had really been searching for proof of an existence after life, but who was also at the same time fearful of what they had found.
The latter part of the movie is an interesting mix of drama, thriller, and horror. In its entirety it is the all too often under-produced psychological thriller, with a focus on ghosts and afterlife communications, which gives it a spooky and sometimes disturbing edge. It has twists and it has suspense and it'll make you think. This slow burner will pull you in gently and have you instinctively checking the dark spaces around you. There are few movies that I would put on a list with this one in terms of quality and build.
Bad Samaritan (2018)
Go On This Ride
Two young car valets working independently for an Italian restaurant in Portland make their side cash by burglarizing the homes of customers, whose cars they are entrusted with. They accomplish this scam by using the in car GPS to lead them to the owner's empty homes while they are dining inside the restaurant. Their strategy involves one staying behind and acting as a lookout on call while the other makes their way to the customer's home. It is revealed that part of their strategy is to only steal things that are unlikely to be missed, thereby reducing the chance of being linked to the crime.
The story is revealed subtly through character interactions, giving it a nice flow that isn't forced. In a lot of ways, they are able to make this insane circumstance seem quite believable. We're shown pieces of the team's life beyond their roles as burglars or valets and this gives us a wider sense of what motivates them. The antagonist of this story is only at first revealed to us through the eyes and experience of the protagonist. As the story moves forward, we're given more pieces of the antagonist, who, in the case of this story, is also the villain.
The thieving duo sees their entire operation fall apart one fateful night when they target a customer who appears to be any ordinary narcissistic, rich, jerk (Cale, played by David Tennant). After breaking into his top of the line smart home, Sean (played by Robert Sheehan) learns that he's actually invaded the home of a highly sophisticated serial killer with unlimited means.
His first clue: the girl chained to the floor in the office.
His second: the elaborate kill room just off the garage.
Forced to leave the chained girl behind, Sean becomes overwrought with guilt and solely focused on making the situation right. The movie then becomes, essentially, the protagonist's quest for redemption, where the assumed villain becomes the hero.
That being said, even as an assumed bad guy, he's very identifiable and likable. He and his accomplice/best friend are both good guys at heart, which makes them the kind of bad guys you root for right off the bat. Even though you know they are scammers and thieves, you still have more respect for them on some basic level than you do for the true villain of the story, even before you know he's a psychopath. So, I think the talents behind this movie do a good job of connecting the audience with the characters in the story.
The suspense building, which is an integral component of this type of film and essential for any well made thriller, I think is pulled off really well. It's not slow moving, just takes its time with regard to intensity. There are several heart pounding moments when you just know something is about to go horribly wrong. And there are at least three really good jump scare moments. Mind you, the "jump scares" are executed well and don't seem cheap or cheesy at all. The context of the story, after all, demands a few good jump scares - regardless. I also really enjoy this story's focus on the psychological aspects of character evolution.
Although the more recent market of the movie genre in which this film resides is often overwrought with unfair disadvantages and bad guys coming out on top, this one does what they should all do - it gives us hope that even those in need of redeeming can overcome the worst possible set of circumstances. It's not all roses, there are plenty of thorns to remind us how very real evil things can be. But it's definitely worth watching as it won't leave you scarred for having given it your attention and instead will leave you with a feeling of triumph.