Dooba Dooba (U.S., 2024)
Official synopsis: In-home security cameras watch as an awkward teenage girl terrorizes her well-meaning babysitter.
Horror film festivals are made for films like Dooba Dooba, and films like Dooba Dooba are made for horror film festivals. I felt uneasy from its opening moments, and after that, matters just got increasingly weirder. Amna (Amna Vegha) obviously needs the money from babysitting 16-year-old Monroe (Betsy Sligh), because the instant red flags from Monroe’s parents (Winston Haynes as Wilson and Erin O’Meara as Reagan) — which include racist and sexist remarks — go up, she should have made a quick u-turn out the door. She accepts the gig, though, which includes sleeping in the bed where Monroe’s brother was murdered in front of the girl. Monroe, who repeatedly talks about how weird she herself is, turns out to be more than a handful. Sligh is obviously having a blast as Monroe, nailing that fine line of playing a character so obnoxious that you want to stop watching but so fascinating that you can’t look away. Vegha is terrific as the protagonist and audience surrogate, wrapped up in trying to keep Monroe calm and in a good mood but finding that a very difficult task. Writer/director Ehrland Hollingsworth crafts a film heavy on the unease and unshakable sense of dread. His use of video, archival footage, and presentation slides — edited in such a way as to hold viewers’ attention for fear of missing a quick visual — give the feeling that anything could pop up on the screen at any time, and whatever that is won’t be comforting.
Queen of the Underworld (Canada, 2024)
Official synopsis: Kate is an isolated woman recovering from the loss of her husband to an overdose. When she begins to experience sleep paralysis, Kate is driven to uncover whether the phenomena is a part of her grieving process . . . or if something otherworldly is waiting for her in the dark . . .
Writer/director Stephanie Izsak crafts an engaging ghost story that aims for stirring emotions in addition to bringing on the shudders in her new Canadian short film Queen of the Underworld. Kate (Morgan Taylor Campbell) is understandably having a hard time as she grieves over the death of husband Chris (Bennett Taylor) and suffers from sleep paralysis. Her chance conversation with another woman dealing with the loss of a loved one opens up the possibility of reconnecting with Chris, but of course, there will be consequences if she makes a wrong decision. Viewers have an early idea of what we are in for with a name drop of Return to Oz, and like that film, Queen of the Underworld delivers its own fair share of dark-tinged fantasy. Campbell is fantastic as the distressed Kate, giving a believable emotional performance that asks much of her. The production values are top notch, and Izsak helms with verve.
Dooba Dooba and Queen of the Underworld screen as part of Nightmares Film Festival, which runs October 17–24, 2024 in Columbus, Ohio. For more information, visit https://nightmaresfest.com/2024-attend-the-festival/.
