Where the Devil Roams (2023)
In arguably their darkest and certainly their goriest offering yet, filmmakers The Adams Family — John Adams, Toby Poser, and their daughter Zelda Adams — invest Where the Devil Roams with an inescapable air of dread. The family members play members of a traveling carnival troupe trying to eke out a meager existence during America’s Great Depression. Father Seven (John Adams) is an emotionally scarred war veteran who must be blindfolded when violence occurs around him, mother Maggie (Poser) possesses a vicious killing streak, and daughter Eve (Zelda Adams) — who is mute except for singing — photographs the gruesome aftermaths of Maggie’s murders. The motives for the murders vary but depend on Maggie, from feeling slighted or looked down upon by those in better financial positions than the family or by mistaking a man for a German, who Seven fought in the war. Where the Devil Roams blends killers-on-the-road and “bizarre carnival” elements, and the diabolical supernatural overtones are strong in this one, as suggested by the film’s title. H6LLB6ND6R, Zelda and Poser’s band, supplies rock music that may be jarring considering the film’s setting but that works well to add an extra edge to the proceedings. Shot wonderfully and boasting terrific-looking practical effects and makeup along with riveting performances, Where the Devil Roams is a stunning work of lower-budget independent filmmaking and my favorite film so far from this highly talented and imaginative family.
Blackout (2023)
Indie horror icon Larry Fessenden’s new film Blackout finds alcoholic artist Charley (Alex Hurt) returning after an unexplained sudden disappearance one month earlier to Talbot Falls, the small rural town where he lives. He left behind ex Sharon (Addison Timlin), whose father Jack Hammond (Marshall Bell) is stirring up trouble with his controversial development project and by accusing Mexican immigrant Miguel (Rigo Garay) of a series of grisly murders. Charley has been suffering blackouts, during which those vicious killings occur. He begins to suspect that he is a werewolf, and rather than focusing on his own plight, he devises a plan to try and solve the aforementioned problems with the townspeople, in part because of his deceased father’s close business involvement with the bullying Hammond. Fessenden follows the traditional tropes of classic werewolf cinema including a tragic protagonist and puts a drama-driven spin on the proceedings that reflects the divisive issues current in modern America. Hurt gives a soulful lead performance, heading up a solid cast that also features Barbara Crampton and Jeremy Holm. Blackout serves up plenty of lycanthrope action and leaves viewers with much to chew on regarding its social commentary.
Dark Sky Films presents Blackout, opening at New York City’s IFC Center on March 13, 2024, with a nationwide Digital/VOD release To follow On April 12th.
Where the Devil Roams and Blackout screened as part of Fantasia, which took place in Montreal, Canada from July 20–August 9, 2023.
