BAFF 2019 Terror Road Short Film Review

A woman (Surely Alvelo) has a nightmarish encounter on her way home from a business meeting. Not knowing what or who she has just met she fights for her life as she’s being terrorized within the confines of her vehicle.

Surely Alvelo’s character was written for her as she has worked with Writer / Director Brian Shephard in the past. Alvelo’s acting credits include Captain America: Civil War, and Sleepy Hollow, the TV Series. Terror Road is only about 5 minutes not including credits and I think Alvelo’s performance makes this short. Her abilities as an actress make you feel as though you are on this journey with her.

Although many boys were tested for the part of The Boy, the part went to actor Brayden Benson. Benson was only 10 years old at the time of filming and I think he did a great job. He was dark, scary, and his performance gave me goosebumps. Brayden’s acting credits include the television series Halt and Catch Fire. I have no doubt that Brayden will grace our screens with his presence in the future.

Terror Road was filmed in Florida over two days and is the first part in a horror anthology by The Skeleton Crew. I’m very curious to see what other stories will be part of this as I’m a huge fan of horror anthologies, most notably Creepshow by horror icons George A. Romero and Stephen King.

Overall I was very pleased with Terror Road. Knowing that it’s the first of many short stories makes this feature even more impressive. This is a great start to the series and I would love to see more from Writer / Director Brian Shephard. I give this short a 10/10. I absolutely loved it. The filming techniques and eerie atmosphere set the tone for this creepy tale. Terror Road is being shown at Buried Alive Film Festival 2019.

BAFF 2019 The Loop Short Film Review

As Mikey (Shane Almagor) wakes from a seemingly harmless nightmare his older brother Tommy (Will Abbott) and his girlfriend Cindi (Grace Westlin) come home with a copy of The Loop, “the scariest movie ever”. Can Mikey survive the night or is this just another nightmare? 

The Loop is brought to us by Writer and Director Rich Ragsdale who’s brother, Kevin Ragsdale plays the films maniacal villain. The villain and the film share the same name which isn’t very common in cinema now, however, it was more common during the 1980’s slasher craze.

Most short films have trouble producing a cohesive story due to a lack of time. This is one of the best uses of practical effects that I have seen within 7 minutes. There is a cohesive storyline, plot, characters, and ending. This is what I look for since these additions are easier to pin point in a short story than a feature film.

The character The Loop reminds me of a hybrid between a Ceno-bite in Clive Barker’s infamous Hellraiser franchise and Freddy Krueger from Wes Craven’s A Nightmare On Elm Street series. The entire film is a throw back to VHS tapes, movie rentals (RIP Blockbuster), and 80’s slashers. I thought this piece was great. If anything I wanted to see more. I give The Loop a 8/10. I wish the acting had been a little more believable but all around I was pleasantly surprised. The Loop is being shown at the 2019 Buried Alive Film Festival and I’m sure it will become a fan favorite in no time.

Brooklyn Horror Fest Rock, Paper, and Scissors Film review

After the death of their father, Maria Jóse (Valeria Giorcelli) and her brother Jose (Pablo Sigal) receive an unexpected visit from Jose’s half sister Magdalena (Agustina Cerviño). Soon after her arrival Maria and Jose discover that She has plans to assist them by taking care of their fathers assets and property. Maria decides to take things into her own hands causing a chain of unfortunate events.

Rock, Paper, and Scissors is a very ambitious project from Argentina created by filmmakers Martín Blousson and Macarena García Lenzi. One of the films greatest assets is its actors. When the audience is first introduced to Maria and Jose they appear to be harmless. It isn’t until Magdalena’s arrival that we see a change in their behavior. There were a few scenes in this film that caught me off guard. When you are watching an film from Argentina the last thing you expect to see is Dorothy from The Wizard Of Oz. Normally this type of reveal would never work in a film like this but because of the characters bizarre behavior it actually fits the story quite well.

It’s rare that you find a film that has a total of three characters without secondary characters to “beef up” the story line. Rock, Paper, and Scissors was created on a low budget. When you have a family that is going through hardships you need to have a certain type of atmosphere to make that believable. Adding too much of a budget to something like that would lessen the impact. People typically don’t think about how they would react in a crisis. You never know what you would truly be capable of unless you were put in a situation where your morals were tested. For many people, myself included, this is quite a scary realization.

Overall I think this film was pretty enjoyable. Some of the darker scenes reminded me of the Stephen King novel Misery, especially the scenes with Maria and Magdalena. I give Rock, Paper, and Scissors a 7/10. While I do think it had its fair share of problems it was still a great watch. I’d recommend this movie to anyone who is a fan of psychological thrillers and foreign cinema.