In Defense: The Gallows

(imdb.com)

Remember when audiences and critics alike gave up on the found-footage genre? Yeah, that happened about five years before the untimely release of The Gallows by Warner Bros. Pictures. Too similar to the oversaturated found-footage and teen horror subgenres, the release of The Gallows was met with critic panning and complete dismay. But, unlike some truly horrible horror films, the complete disregard for The Gallows is somewhat unwarranted.

Set in the modern day, The Gallows follows a group of teens exploring their school after dark in an attempt to destroy a play set. The Gallows mythology is built around a fictional play of the same name that 20 years prior had been central to an accidental hanging of a student at the school. Upon arrival, the teens become locked in the school and things descend into chaos from there. The film stars Reese Mishler (The End of Forever) - a Troy Bolton type, originally forced into the play but having grown to care for it and his drama queen costar Pfeiffer, played by Pfeiffer Brown. His more cliquey friend Ryan and Ryan's girlfriend Cassidy spearhead the attempted downfall of the play and are played by Ryan Shoos (Bastard) and Cassidy Spilker (God's Not Dead).


Not to deny the film's flaws, it's important to point out how paper thin the film is. Featuring a pretty basic execution and some tumbled camerawork, The Gallows deserves criticism for its lack of originality. But, plenty of movies are and The Gallows certainly sets itself up better with a fresher angle than many movies that get far more critical praise (every superhero movie - especially from Marvel is the same) and even though the shaky cam is worn, it’s never criminally bad. There's plenty of atmosphere and built suspense, unlike actually bad horror movies like The Bye Bye Man and even the film's predictability isn't entirely a bad thing because it does fill out its edges properly before making a dashing bolt for the finish line.


So what's actually good about The Gallows? Well, for starters, the film offers a pretty great, young cast who feed into their roles with deep commitment. Spiller in particular is a memorable addition as the sometimes-mean girl and Shoos plays condescending well. These purposely unlikable characters make for one of horror's most iconic and useful tools: a group of bad characters who have bad things happen to them. It's a restful and entertaining experience for viewers who crave this type of satisfaction and is an overlooked part of the film. On top of that, the cheap, but effective jump scares that run rampant throughout the film make for a suspense-driven journey that works most of the time.


Horror shouldn't always be about achievement. Sometimes - especially in the summer months - fans of the genre just want something easy and fun to watch. The Gallows is that movie. It's a simple, but entertaining film that features some great young stars, a few terrific jump scares and enough bang for your buck to make it worth it. Even if it's not some landmark film with deep meaning or an original plot, The Gallows does exactly what viewers should have thought it would do.

In Defense: Chernobyl Diaries



(imdb.com)

When I first started this blog, I wrote an article defending The Forest starring Natalie Dormer and now I'm back at it defending a placeholder on last week's list, Chernobyl Diaries. With just an 18 percent rating on Rotten Tomatoes and audiences panning it on social media, the release of Chernobyl Diaries received a lot of unnecessary hate, despite being relatively original and most definitely horrifying. The storyline felt new even if it adhered to particular horror survival conventions. The "stuck in a radioactive plant" plotline definitely deserves less hate.

Firstly, the acting isn't all that bad. From former child star Jesse McCartney's (Keith) Chris to Olivia Dudley's (Chillerama) Natalie, there are quite a few above average performances. Yes, while it might be surprising given some questionable previous performances, Jesse McCartney is actually adequate. Even side characters like Zoe, played by Ingrid Berdal (Cold Prey), who lasted way too long, were so great in their roles that you felt sympathy watching them in despair. In fact, I can't pick out a performance that was particularly bad and I'd like someone to try.

Chernobyl Dairies scared me a lot the first time I saw it. Between numerous jump and incredibly suspenseful moments, I was dumbfounded by the lack of love it received. With the exception of a poorly placed and untimely bear, I would argue that every other scare is worthwhile. The moment the group is in the dark kitchen when one of the creatures appears, makes my skin crawl. Then it continues down a strong path of sounds in the dark and an especially terrifying child (who was the reason for Chernobyl Diaries making last week's list).

Perhaps the strongest part of Chernobyl Diaries is its use of setting. With on-site filming in Europe and plenty of strong visuals, the Pripyat backdrop of the film felt fresh, especially for a horror film in an age when many were rather basic. Chernobyl Diaries made the most of it's setting of concrete and harsh landscape. Even if parts of the movie were less compelling, it's hard to become distracted by things outside of the movie.

Say what you will about Chernobyl Diaries, but this film really got the job done. It may have fed into some clichés but with a strong plot, acting and setting, the dislike of it felt unnecessary. It definitely scared me and like The Descent did for cave diving, Chernobyl Diaries made sure that I would never want to do anything involving extreme tourism.