The Overlook: Savageland

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Mockumentaries are a hit-or-miss game in filmmaking. If done well, these films feel entirely nonfiction. Done poorly, and a mockumentary can seem flimsy, fake and ultimately unwatchable. That's why coming across an effective one that provides grounded realism with just enough supernatural aspects can be a great discovery. Films like The Bay or The Conspiracy tie dark and twisted realism with just enough slow-burning sprinkles of horror to become impressive - and fictional - cultural pieces; seamlessly tying in political themes and alarmingly realistic accounts to make for some truly terrifying horrors. Savageland is attempts to do similar.

Savageland takes place shortly after an entire town is mysteriously murdered. The sole survivor of the event - an undocumented immigrant - is instantly blamed. However, his photos from the event paint a very different picture. The film stars Noe Montes as Francisco Salazar, the sole survivor of the event, Monica Davis (California Solo), Len Wein (Gotham) and Edward Green (Distraction) play the most relevant interviewees, Monica, Gus and Len, respectively. Each of these cast members cater to the film's real-life point of view and provide some really grounded performances.

The best part about Savageland is its cultivated sense of suspense. Throughout the entire film, the interviewees continue to negate and question the released photographs validity. While the audience is led to believe Salazar is innocent, they can't help but wonder if it’s true. It's a really interesting and politically-fueled direction bolstered by the fact that the suspect is an undocumented immigrant and all that means in a trial. These political tones aren't so glaring that they distract from the film's fictional purpose, but they provide enough incite to help viewers understand how different ethnic and cultural backgrounds are handled in criminal proceedings.

Savageland takes awhile to really get going. Its attempts to stay closely connected to a timeline and unveiling remove some of the thrill of what makes true crime documentaries truly engrossing. With zero dramatizations, far too many interviewees and a host of blurry photographs meant to keep audiences' attention, Savageland does lose some points for its tedious pacing. This isn't something particularly terrible though, because the film manages to reach a climax that is at least somewhat compelling. A lack of concrete answers additionally lead to some frustration, but like many true-crime documentaries, sometimes the unanswered questions are what makes the result so disturbing.

While the film does suffer from lengthy explanations, the films best moments are entertaining enough to warrant a watch. Some of the more scary doctored photos provide a new and fresh take on what zombie films can be. In a world of redundant tales of survival, catering to a band of misfits brought together by the apocalypse, Savageland is completely different. Even when it becomes shaky, you can't help but continue onward, almost wishing that a companion film would be released of the actual events. 

Best in Show: Unsuspecting Travelers Abroad (Pt. I of II)

5. Chernobyl Diaries 

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This movie's gotten a bad rap. Featuring a pretty standard group of characters who engage with one another and their situation in a way not much unlike real life, Chernobyl Diaries reinforces the idea that when traveling, you should stick with the typical. Extreme tourism feels right up the alley of many who decide to go abroad, and for this group, that decision comes with a hefty price. This film is a scary reminder that sometimes, those areas that are off-limits should remain just that: off-limits. 



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4. The DescentThe Descent has been widely covered on list after list on this blog. But, it's relevancy to horror is far too paramount to be excluded. The Descent seeps into pretty much every subgenre out there as it's perfectly shot, intensive plot and stellar cast all make for a terrifying but completely compelling endeavor. At the center of this film, Sarah isn't just in an unknown cave, she is quite literally out of her element; having just crossed the Atlantic to for an annual trip with friends. She of course gets far more than she bargained for as a group of strong-willed ladies become trapped in a cavernous maze of death. The Descent should scare both local cave-divers and those looking for more international adventures alike.

3. Hostel

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For whatever reason, horror filmmakers seem to have a pension for gore abroad. Like Wolf Creek and Borderland, Eli Roth's Hostel is the type of gross-out fest that easily makes the stomach turn. Hostel follows a pair of tourists who get caught up in a seedy, underground business of (literally) gut-wrenching proportions. Hostel is a dark and sick movie that'll have even the most versed travelers feeling uneasy about visiting places off the beaten path. It's the type of film that utilizes foreign barriers and the resulting isolation to create an atmosphere of absolute dread. For those homebodies out there, this movie presents nothing more than a confirmation that perhaps keeping local is the best way to go.





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2. As Above, So Below/Devil's Pass

Both As Above, So Below and Devil's Pass share the unique similarities of travelers intentionally looking for mystery. In each, a group of explorers end up in a downward spiral of chaos. In As Above, So Below, an archaeologist and her newly formed group of spelunkers travel into an unexplored part of the Paris Catacombs and practically descend into hell. In Devil's Pass, some American students run off to Russia to make a documentary about some missing hikers. Both are found-footage, both have some truly scary moments and each is notable for their horrific execution. While Devil's Pass suffers from some weak graphics, there's enough atmospheric suspense - similar to The Blair Witch Project - to make it quite the journey. As Above, So Below was also the center of some criticism despite some truly scary moments that'd make anyone's skin crawl.

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1. An American Werewolf in London 

The pinnacle of this list and by far the most deserving of the top spot is An American Werewolf in London. Like all of the unfortunate victims of circumstance on this list, perhaps none are more unsettling than this pair of Americans who encounter a beast on an English countryside. Equally funny as it is scary, An American Werewolf in London has aged better than most 80s horror films. Featuring the isolation of being in a foreign country with some old nostalgia and lore typically met by backpackers exploring desolate area, every moment of this film feels holistically thought through. The humor is never distracting, the jump scares are never predictable and throughout, viewers will be drawn closer and closer into one of the best werewolf movies ever.

Best in Show: Unsuspecting Travelers Abroad (Pt. I of II)

Horror has a long history of inflicting itself upon the unexpected. Especially abroad, travelers often get way more than they bargained for. With summer fast approaching and the need to explore outside of our borders itching at the adventurous, this week's list looks at the best horror movies about travelers abroad. Ignoring the somewhat problematic nature of painting foreign lands as particularly dangerous, these free-for-all movies are often complete descents into chaos.




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10. Out of the Dark

While not the most cohesive film, Out of the Dark is a rare indie horror film that feels scary. Offering a share of jarring moments featuring dead, bandaged children and terrifying shadows, the film wasn't much of a critic or commercial success. Its problematic painting of the mysticism of the third world - although met with a certain tone of first world oppression - didn't do the ghost story any favors. But, Out of the Dark is plenty horrifying. It follows a mother positioned to take over her father's business in South America, whose family is haunted upon arrival. The movie gets twisty as discoveries are made and the mother's daughter goes missing. Out of the Dark is ta telling story of how American misdeals can come back to bite you.



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9. They're Watching

They're Watching is a pretty ridiculous movie with a fun, engaging plot and pretty much zero basis in reality. Following an American home makeover TV crew in Eastern Europe, They're Watching plays completely into the traditions and mystic nostalgia of the area while providing the occasional scare and intentional laugh. It's a terrifically odd movie destined to scare few, but entertain all. It's placement on this list is mostly thanks to the sketchy villagers surrounding the makeover home who make for deeply unsettling moments.



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8. Wolf Creek

This movie is bleak. Wolf Creek is a gritty portrayal of suffering at the hands of a maniac. Following a pair of British 20-somethings who travel into the Outback with an Australian, Wolf Creek is a stark cat-and-mouse chase of disturbing proportions. It's a film that features little relief or absurdity and instead focuses on unsettling the viewer through very real possibilities of kidnap and torture. For some viewers, Wolf Creek will most definitely be too much, but who could blame them? This film is so painfully executed that the awfulness these characters experience, you feel, too.



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7. The Ruins

The Ruins is pretty typical for a mid-2000s horror movie; dumb young adults doing dumb, adventurous things and paying for it. But none of these aspects stops this film from being terrifying. Featuring a mysterious Mayan ruin with viciously alive vines, The Ruins makes adventure feel all too worthless. From the Cabin Fever inflections of attempting to strip your body of the infection to the off-center mimicry of the plants, this movie will leave viewers afraid of going anywhere that's not a particular tourist trap. In The Ruins, unmarked means death.



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6. Borderland

For detractors of Wolf Creek, heed this warning: Borderland is not for you. Following a trio of college friends who get swept up into a satanic crime cult, Borderland takes everything displayed by Wolf Creek, adds dimensions of the occult and tosses it into a small Mexican city. It's gory and gratuitous violence; all exasperated by harsh lighting and intense camera work make for a romp that'll make stomachs turn. Borderland has some of the intrusive nature of Americans into other's lands and nails the ignorance of youth perfectly.