Tags:
Film: Another Evil
Year: 2016
Directors: Carson Mell
Writers: Carson Mell
Starring: Steve Zissis, Mark Proksch and Dan Bakkedahl
Review:
This was a movie that I heard about through podcasts. It went on a list that multiple shows covered it, so I made it a point to check out. My guess is that it would have been end of year shows or when I first got into listening, so I'm not fully sure where I heard about this one now. I didn't remember much about what was said. That allowed me to come in blind.
Synopsis: when ghosts invade their vacation home, a successful artist and his family hire an exorcist who may be more frightening than the spirits he's been hired to destroy.
We start this at the vacation house belonging to Dan (Steve Zissis) and Mary Papadakis (Jennifer Irwin). They are there with their son, Jasper (Dax Flame) who goes by Jazz. They're playing charades. It gets cut short when they hear a noise upstairs. Dan doesn't think it could be animals. He finds a chair knocked over in his studio as he's a painter. He puts it right and leaves. There is another noise to which he finds a paintbrush on the floor. There's also a mark on the wall. Jazz sees and hears something in the hallway. Dan checks again to find brushes in the form of a triangle. He also sees a ghost.
This couple decides to hire Joey Lee Dansing (Dan Bakkedahl) to cleanse the house. He contacts the spirits, figuring out that there is two. He reports to Dan and Mary, telling them that they're harmless. He won't remove them though. This annoys Dan. He tells this to his friend, George (Steve Little), who recommends an exorcist.
The other guy is Os Bijourn (Mark Proksch). They meet at a restaurant to get Os up to speed. He knows Joey and finds his work to be lazy. These two guys go to the cabin where Os disagrees with Joey's assessment. He wants to start at once. Mary wants to talk about this, but Os makes comments questioning his stance with the family. Os gets to work cleansing the house. He also reveals dark things that have happened to him and with his personal life. He sees a chance to befriend Dan. When things are ending, he isn't done with his work and it will change the Papadakis' lives forever.
That is where I want to leave my recap and introduction to the characters. The reason being is that we don't have the deepest story. I did read a bit before watching this that this was supported by the Sundance Institute Feature Film Program. We have a small cast. This is mostly set in one location. It is more about getting to know Dan and Os as they get to know each other. When it is time to go back to the real world, it causes issues.
Since this is a character study of these two, that is where I want to delve deeper. Let’s start with Os. He seems like a nice guy who is awkward. He has an aura about him when they first meet. The more that we get to know him, we see that he isn't as confident as he comes off. He has issues that he's dealing with, like going through a divorce. There is something interesting that we see with intimacy when they hire a stripper. Proksch does a great job at taking on this character. The more we learn about, we see the layers and he brings this to life.
Then on the other side, let's look at Dan. He's a good family man. He loves his wife and child. What is great is that he's an artist. He didn't know how he would take care of his family when Mary got pregnant at a young age. Dan started painting circles and all sold out. He has continued doing this and it is funny that he made up why it started. Os says certain things that question his manliness and I get that as a guy. I also like that he's annoyed with Joey when he won't get rid of the ghosts. Zissis does a solid job at bringing this character to life. He is a sympathetic guy who makes bad choices that lead to terrifying results.
I'll finish out with the rest of the cast. Most of the actors here are comedians so I think that helps with the timing. That makes sense with what we're doing here. I like Flame and Irwin as this family. I love where things end up with them and the payoff that comes with it. It builds tension that we need. Bakkedahl is good in his small role along with Little in his. They help to push things to where they end up.
All that is left then is filmmaking. Where I want to start would be the editing and pacing. What is interesting here is that on paper, this is boring. It doesn't come off that way though because of how this is constructed. We have Joey and then Os to assess if the cabin is haunted. I personally thought that these two were full of it and they were just taking money without doing anything to help. This does confirm that the cabin is haunted. I like how subdued the effects are. The two ghosts are only shown in flashes. That's done well. The cinematography is good. I love the feeling of these two being isolated at this location. Where it went was dark and I wasn't expecting it. I'd also say that the sound design helps build tension along with the soundtrack.
In conclusion, this one is an under talked about film. Do I think that this is great? No, but it works well in the confines of what it is doing. We are taking the idea of a haunted house and grounding it with a realistic story. The acting helps bring the characters to life, with Zissis and Proksch leading the way. This is well-made. I thought the pacing was good along with the atmosphere and the cinematography helping there. One that I don't know if everyone will like as it has an arthouse vibe. This has a slow build up, but I thought it was good where it ended so credit there.
My Rating: 7.5 out of 10