THE BANALITY (2023)
The Banality (AKA Death Letter Blues) is a moving meditation on the mysteries of life peppered with supernatural elements, set in rural Mississippi and rich in southern gothic atmosphere. A young feral boy is found in the area and town priest Father Moss (Sherman Augustus) persuades a childless couple to adopt him. Eleven years later, the boy has adapted well to life in the small town but is harassed by some of his classmates. When he turns up dead after a nighttime outdoor party, Father Moss, the parents, and practically every other local in the small community is affected by his demise one way or another. Gorgeous looking and wonderfully acted, this unique offering from cowriters/codirectors Strack Azar and Michael Stevantoni is contemplative, existential horror on the quiet side that asks viewers to consider how dark choices can lead to consequences years later, and even how such actions may affect people after their passing, whether or not they are spiritual or religious, as well as the effect on those they leave behind. For those seeking thought-provoking horror-adjacent fare, The Banality comes highly recommended.
WATCHDOG (2023)
Writer/director L.C. Holt’s home-invasion horror Watchdog finds CPA Travis (Chaney Morrow) — the object of derision by his girlfriend Anna’s (Celeste Blandon) parents Robert (Mark Patton) and Irene (Felissa Rose), who have always considered her too good for him to the point that he pretty much believes that, too — rescued from a mugging by drifter veteran Drew (Wes Robinson). Travis insists on inviting Drew to stay the night very much against Anna’s wishes — they were supposed to have a quiet night alone to celebrate their anniversary. Because of a cold open involving a couple being murdered by an unknown assailant, it isn’t much of a spoiler to mention that in the time-tested horror-movie tradition of men not listening to their significant others, Drew turns out to be a serial killer and the couple is in for a night of terror. On the plus side, Holt wisely does away with the tired trope of having the home invader be a masked maniac without a back story. Much like with vampire lore, Travis should have never invited this stranger into the couple’s home. The personalities of Travis and Anna don’t exactly give viewers sympathetic protagonists to fully get behind. Holt builds the suspense in a slower-burn approach than many other films in the home invasion horror subgenre, but Watchdog follows rather familiar beats without many surprises. Fans of the subgenre should find plenty to like here, though they will likely have seen much of it before.
The Banality and Watchdog screened as part of the 2023 Popcorn Frights Film Festival, which ran August 10–20, 2023 with both in-person screenings and a virtual lineup available to viewers in the United States. For more information, visit https://popcornfrights.com/.
