While we are given numerous films to review, some don't always fit with the type of content we normally provide here. However, in the interest of providing thoughts on them nonetheless, here are our thoughts on several of these that were watched over the last month that isn't worth producing a full review for but is still worth some of your time.
A Spoonful of Sugar (Mercedes Bryce Morgan)-
This supernatural-tinged genre effort, about a mischievous babysitter who takes a job with a family whose son is diagnosed with severe allergies, was a complete wreck with barely anything to like about it. Those few likable qualities extend to the visual aesthetics on display here which are striking enough when dealing with her hallucinations and visions where the distorted color schemes and outlandish concepts come into play quite nicely. With interactions involving severed limbs, objects transforming before her very eyes or just completely zoning out on something which is fine enough but seems to be the entirety of the genre qualities of this one. Far too much of this is just listless drama-based conversations about her relationship with the son or the marital struggles of the parents who are trying to work through the issues raising him while still trying to keep their relationship going just leave this an unbearable slough to get to the point where this one feels so reminiscent of any other crazy-babysitter/nanny film where she tries to weasel into a family. An attempt at making the film speak for the issues surrounding motherhood and the struggles for achieving perfection in the role are interesting in concept but never explored much leaving it with some unresolved questions, especially in the finale where it’s quite obvious to see what’s going to happen despite being presented as a twist. In the end, this one ends up not being interesting when it’s mostly about repeating familiar tropes and the repeated usage of familiar tropes undoes the good leaving this one a highly underwhelming and near-worthless feature.
The Burial (Michael Escalante)-
This spectacular indie effort, about a man and his girlfriend who go to a cabin in the woods to help his brother deal with a desperate situation only to get dragged into a deranged murder plot, was a lot of fun and had a lot to like about it. The setup here and central plot are quite likable with the relatable scenario about family strife and general unease surrounding everything making for a highly effective starting point which is then carried across the later half where it turns into a seemingly supernatural tale about this stranger's body haunting the group. Managing to utilize plenty of exploits here to enhance that with great use of opening doors mysteriously, strange noises out in the woods, and hallucinations only one of them is aware of, this is all rather fun for what it is and leads to some thrilling moments involving the dead body coming back for revenge against the group that makes the second half here pretty fun. Still, it tends to take a while to get there as the reliance on family drama in the first part here regarding his relationship with his girlfriend and feelings of resentment towards his brother for what's gone on between them in the past holds this one down quite a bit, much like the actual relationship in play here which is pretty cliched and uninteresting as there's not much going on here to really warrant this kind of film length so it does drag in parts. It's all minor, though, and manages to keep this one down slightly overall.
Ghost Town: An American Nightmare (Owen Conway)-
A supernatural-themed morality tale, about a drifter going to work at a bar in a run-down desert town only to be haunted by figures from his past, that could've been quite good had it stuck in a more traditional genre lane. The idea of the local figures that he comes across while working at the main bar, from the prostitutes to the staff normally there, and the various figures he comes across in the rest of the town manages to generate quite an unsettling atmosphere with the way no one seems to acknowledge anything he does or what's going on. That comes into play far more once the visions start in and the numerous encounters here that place his life in the balance as the ghostly sightings use the chilling imagery of their appearance and suddenness of their usage which makes this so disheartening when this is all dropped in favor of a morality tale that the second half brings in. This is introduced so haphazardly and becomes so obvious with how it's presented that there's very little chance to have it make an impact which also manages to hold this down due to the oddly psychological direction it takes. Not only is a lot of what came before it surprisingly moot where it makes everything that happened rather confusing as to how it all ties together with that reveal but as a general practice the twist is incredibly overdone and can be seen coming quite easily. Had this been more of a straightforward genre effort it could've been a lot more fun.
Unseen (Yoko Okumura)-
This strong thriller, about a woman who escapes into the woods away from an abusive ex and has to rely on a reluctant car station clerk to help guide her through the situation, was a rather fun and highly enjoyable genre effort. One of the better features of this one is the engaging setup that provides a stellar amount of chemistry between the two despite their situation. The obstacles that they bring up and try to overcome while in the midst of the situation offer quite a lot to like while giving this a stellar tactic that's played off incredibly well with the various tactics needed to navigate her through the woods safely while avoiding detection by her ex as well as trying to remain in control of the situation in the convenience store which is an odd way to go about this. It adds some nice suspense to everything while dealing with the resulting storylines as things in the woods escalate, while the conclusion of the film helps us connect to them even further which all makes for a lot to like. As a whole, the secondary storyline about the day in a life at the convenience store is quite effective and adds some generally amusing comedy to balance everything out but the longer it goes on the more ludicrous it becomes and stands out the wrong way because of that. Some of the stuff that happens, especially once the help arrives for the villain which is so outlandish that it's hard to take seriously with the way it counteracts the more realistic thriller angle that's been going on elsewhere. However, that's not enough to lower this one at all as there's a lot to like here.
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