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Film: Onyx the Fortuious and the Talisman of Souls
Year: 2023
Director: Andrew Bowser
Writer: Andrew Bowser
Starring: Andrew Bowser, Rivkah Reyes and Melanie Chandra
Review:
This was a movie that I’ll be honest, I heard good things, but I’m not always the biggest fan of comedy/horror. This has a runtime of almost two hours, so that also factored in. Since I’m approaching my end of year episode, this was on Screambox so I decided to go ahead and check this out. There were others who seemed to enjoy this so that helped as well.
Synopsis: fledging occultist Onyx (Andrew Bowser) and a group of worshippers attend a once-in-a-lifetime ritual at their idol, Bartok the Great’s (Jeffrey Combs) mansion.
We are following Marcus aka Onyx. We see the making of his video that he’s using to submit to the contest. This is to be a part of the ritual from the synopsis. It is from the video we get the idea that Onyx is a loser and doesn’t fit in. His video is also interrupted at the end by his mother, Nancy (Barbara Crampton). I should also point out that Onyx doesn’t get along with his stepfather, Todd (Ryan Stanger). He’s also bullied at his fast-food job by Tanner (Guy Wilson), along with his friends, as well as his boss Masha (Donna Pieroni). We see his last day there as he’s had enough.
He goes home and is praying to God or Satan or whoever will listen. That is when his life changes. He won the contest and will be one of the five that was selected for the Bartok ritual. Their goal is to raise the demon Abaddon who will grant them eternal life. The other winners are Mackenzie (Rivkah Reyes), Jesminder (Melanie Chandra), Mr. Duke (Terrence ‘T.C.’ Carons) and Shelley (Arden Myrin). They granted access to the house by giving up a personal item and wearing a peridot stone around their neck. They then must work together with their first test, reviving Bartok the Great.
Things aren’t as they seem here as Onyx sees one of their members being sacrificed. Dark secrets are revealed and Bartok’s ritual might not grant them all the eternal life. I should also point out that he has Farrah (Olivia Taylor Dudley) aiding him and she might not be on the same plan as her leader. Our group must figure out the truth before it is too late for them and humanity itself.
That is where I’ll leave my recap and introduction to the characters. Where I’m going to start is that I had a blast with this movie. What is interesting here is that this seemed like something that started when writer/director/star, Bowser, created this ‘Weird Arby’s Guy’ YouTube character and it spiraled into what we got here. I can see that since the characters seems to be well thought out and deep backstory. Part of that is given here. It doesn’t seem just a thrown together concept for this movie.
With that set up, I should say again that I’m not always the biggest fan of comedy/horror. It is a tough balancing act that I do think this gets it right. This is played straight. The comedy comes from Bowser and his character of Onyx. He is lacking self-esteem and is awkward. Not everyone is trying to be funny, which in turn helps to make things that way. Onyx is bumbling so that causes things to be funny. I’ll credit Bowser here for that. I love that he randomly slips in saying ‘I dunno’ as a nervous tick. We get to see why he does which is a solid touch. The writing is good here as well so that helps. I’ll also say that there are jokes referencing Child’s Play, Re-Animator and The Day the Earth Stood Still/Army of Darkness. These are blink and you’ll miss it things that are sprinkled in for horror fans. I love that.
Let me then go over the horror elements. The basis of this story is this group wanting to do a ritual with Bartok the Great. What I like here is that they blindly believe and follow him. He is bringing them here to take advantage of their naivety, which is a classic troupe. The thought and care put in that was good. We also get Lovecraftian and dark religious elements. There is a knife of Dagon. They are Satan worshippers and the demon Abaddon falls into the evil side of Christianity. I also believe this figure appears in Judaism as well. I was there for these elements and it kept my interest to see how it would play out. There are also stakes, which is good.
Now I do have a negative though. This runs too long. I don’t think it needs to be almost two hours. If we trim this down to under an hour and forty-five minutes or even to 90 minutes, I think this runs tighter. My interest waned later in it this and I lost interest. Not enough to say this was ruined or that I hated it. It just lost steam for me. There is potential here for sequels and to continue following Onyx, which I’d be there for. We don’t necessarily need everything we get. I also understand that if this doesn’t go well, there won’t be more. It is a tight rope to walk.
That should be enough for the story so over to the acting. I thought this was good across the board. Bowser is great as this character and the care put into it shows. His comedy worked for me, especially the cadence of how he talks. He raises his voice at the end of his sentence and it made me laugh. Reyes was good as this character who befriends Onyx. Mack was one of my favorite characters, also because she shares her name with my daughter. Chandra, Carson and Myrin were good, as were the rest of the group doing the ritual. I like the fact that Mr. Duke is helping to figure out what Bartok is up to before it is too late. Dudley is solid in her role as the helper to the villain who might not be fully evil. Or at least doesn’t want Bartok to succeed. I loved the cameos by Crampton, Combs and Ralph Ineson’s voice. The former two were great and the last one was spot on for what was needed. There isn’t a bad performance as they all push everyone to where they need to end up.
All that is left then is filmmaking. I thought this was well-made. The cinematography is good. It helps capture the eerie stuff they’re doing. I also like that certain characters see things one way and there’s another perception of it. This mansion is an old dark house with secret passages, which I love. There are good practical effects. We also get CGI, but that was used to bring things to life that they couldn’t without. I love the demons and creatures being practical as that adds charm to it that I loved. Other than that, the soundtrack fit what was needed. I especially liked the sound design, matching up voices with the entities they are taking on.
In conclusion, this is a fun movie. I’ll say one last time that I’m not always the biggest fan of comedy horror. This one though balances it well. There is this deadly ritual going on and it is taken seriously. The comedy comes from solid acting. Special credit there to Bowser and Combs. Everyone else is good around them. I thought the effects were good as was the cinematography and framing to capture the atmosphere. They also do well with the sound design and track there as well. My biggest gripe is the runtime. This is still worth a watch as I enjoyed my time with it.
My Rating: 7.5 out of 10