Film Festival: Shriekfest 2006 (Day 1)

Posted by Robert Fure (robert@filmschoolrejects.com) on September 26, 2006

Shriekfest, now in it’s 6th year, is a small horror-themed film festival that takes place over two weekends. The first weekend was September 22-24 and the festival wraps up September 30 til October 2nd. Each day is filled with several film “programs,” generally either about 90 minutes of shorts or a short paired with a feature length film.

This year, the festival is held at Raleigh Studios on Melrose in their screening room. It’s a small, personal festival with attendance ranging from 30 to 120 people depending on which program you’re at.

A lot of the programs end with Q&A sessions with cast and crew, who generally make up a large portion of the audience. It’s sad that this festival doesn’t get more attention, it’s a fun little time and the price won’t break your back if you’ve got to pay to get in.

Below I’ll review the short film programs for Sunday the 24th and check later posts for the feature length reviews.

Film Program 6

Suffer the Little Children (www.sufferproductions.com) In this short, a teacher, Ms. Sidley, suspects that one of her students isn’t exactly human. She finds out that young Robert is a “changling” and has already converted several other students. Can she stop them and will anyone believe her? Well, yes and no.

This short is a licensed adaptation of a Stephen King story of the same name. The special effects are decent for such a small budget, but the film in general is fairly bland and boring. I hate to say it, because I really wish all the entrants the best.

Final Grade: C

Left Behind Directed by Yvette Mangassarian, a hottie, this short follows a family that moves into a new house with a dark history. As the relationship between Kate and her son grows tense and Kate’s visions becoming stronger Kate is forced to find out the truth about the house and her son.

This film ran at 14 minutes and probably could have gone a little longer, but it was a student film and probably had some time limitations on it. It was well directed and decently acted and moved along nicely. Overall, it was a decent experienced.

Final Grade: B

The Showdown (www.theshowdownmovie.com) Official synopsis: A confrontation between a batter and a pitcher in a high-stakes baseball game, juxtaposed against a deadly duel between two gunslingers in the old west.

While I don’t quite know why this was entered in a horror festival, it was pretty sweet. It had probably the highest budget of all the shorts and it looked good. The baseball stuff was shot well and was ok, but the real draw for me was the beautiful western parts. It was shot in Lone Pine CA, a beautiful area, and the action breakdown rocked. I’d recommend catching this.

Final Grade: A+

Film Program 7

Contorted Hazel (www.contortedhazel.com)This film came ot the festival via Scotland and followed Marion and her young son, Stuart. They watch over an old historic building that is rather creepy. Stuart keeps his nightmares, which he draws on paper, in jars in a closet. When one jar breaks, his nightmares attack the house. Only with the help of one of his mysterious dream creations, Hazel, are they saved.

This was a pretty decent flick that looked good. The CGI was good for a small budget, although the CGI leaves bothered me because they were blantantly out of place. Everything else was pretty cool, although the story didn’t explain the significance of Hazel.

Final Grade: B

Alone (www.alonethefilm.com) This short takes place during the 1950s era and looks good with nice production values. It’s a predictable story about a sorority girl alone in her house with a killer on the loose. But who could the killer be? The timely appearance of her friend’s boyfriend or the mysterious plain clothes cop? You’ll figure it out quickly in this predictable story, but with a lead so beautiful I’ve just got to give it high marks. Overall, enjoyable.

Final Grade: B+

Post Mortem (www.jsoemantri.com) An infection is ravaging the city and a security guard and a medical intern must take care of a makeshift mortuary. Sorry to say it, but this zombie short left me high and dry. I wasn’t entertained or interested. It was filmed ok, but the sets were a distraction and overall it just wasn’t as thought out as it could have been. Sorry dudes.

Final Grade: D

Bug Crush (www.bugcrush.net) In this short based on a short story from the anthology Queer Fear 2 (yes, it follows homosexuals. Grow up.) we follow Ben, a small town lowner who develops a strange fascination with Grant Dick, the new kid, the rebel. As Ben does everything he can to get close to Grant, he delves into a strange and creepy world of odd substance abuse and warped relationships. Be careful what you wish for.

This was one of the better shorts and relatively creepy. The acting was all well done and it was fairly disturbing - which it was intended to be. If you dig shorts and disturbing subject matter, you’ll probably dig this.

Final Grade: B+/A- (Tough Call!)

That’ll wrap up the two short programs. Check out my other posts for the other programs and more reviews. Until then, sayonara suckas!

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