Movie Review: Lost Gully Road (2017)

December 7, 2019

Written by DanXIII

Daniel XIII; the result of an arcane ritual involving a King Diamond album, a box of Count Chocula, and a copy of Swank magazine, is a screenwriter, director, producer, actor, artist, and reviewer of fright flicks…Who hates ya baby?

Lucy (Adele Perovic) hauls ass to that hoary ol’ chestnut; a secluded cabin in the woods, to escape from her mega-shit relationship. Naturally, human companship is hard to come by out in the middle of East Asshair, but Lucy does manage to get chatty with both the owner of the abode, (Jane Clifton) and a shopkeeper (John Brumpton), who may be a bit on the questionable side.

Even with those two scamps, the days become a sea of boredom, and even though the promise of relief in the form of a visit from Lucy’s sister Cassie is looming large, the stay at the cabin begins to become right shit. At least she has a sinister entity hangin’ around to liven things up… or possibly cause her all manner of harm. You can’t have your cake and eat it too Lucy-baby!

Lost Gully Road is a sinister shocker that gets a lot of things right. For one, the focus being on Lucy and her plight makes her both engaging and relatable for the viewer. To put it another way, we’ve all experienced “cabin fever” to one degree or another, so that acts as an “in” as things grow evermore beyond the pale with characters possibly being more than they seem and supernatural shenanigans entering Lucy’s already troubled life.

Speaking of Lucy, the character wouldn’t be jack and or shit without the rock solid acting chops of Perovic who perfectly conveys the nervousness, isolation, and terror the character experiences… all of which is courtesy on a narrative that keeps things boiling at a deliberate pace that creates ever mounting and effective tension.

And while we are at it, that narrative (courtesy of director Donna McRae and co-writer Michael Vale) adds the real-world horror of a woman in an abusive environment (who manages to escape only to find herself in further dire-straits) adds further depth and sympathy from a sub-genre not often concerned with such raw situations among their traditional slashers, demons, or other assorted monsters and meanies (though some familiar tropes are trotted out here and there).

To sum it up; Lost Gully Road is packed with emotion, atmosphere, and some new ideas among the tried and true favs that “cabin in the woods” flicks usually offer up, and is definitely worth a wicked watch!

 

 

 

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