Sunday, February 13, 2011
Michael Allen
Husk was originally a five minute short from director Brett Simmons in 2005. This title was re-worked into a full feature with help from After Dark Films. This film was released into theatres January 28th and recently, there have been a couple showings of Husk on the SyFy Network. Now, 28DLA.com finds itself lost in the cornfields and this is a where a horror fan wants to be.
Being lost in the corn creates tension, because five twenty-somethings find themselves fending off pitchfork attacks, kamikaze crows and masked scarecrows. The action is quick to begin and soon, a mythos is developed of a murdering brother in the corn rows. The psalm Genesis 4:11 will clue viewers in to the Cain and Abel story of curses, while the characters run for their soon to be ended lives in never ending stalks of corn.
There is a difficulty that emerges while being lost in the corn. You cannot see more than a few feet ahead of oneself. Yet, a vengeful, murdering spirit can locate you in seconds. You cannot hide, you cannot find the road and soon, you are sewing yourself a scarecrow mask after being slaughtered by a hidden villain. Viewers, like the characters, cannot tell where the next attack is coming from and this is exciting!
Another challenge that begins to develop in Simmons' cornfield is the helplessness of the situation. You cannot see, you do not know where you are going and your hooded adversary is crashing through the corn next to you. Death is imminent. Fighting seems much like a distraction, as one scarecrow is sure to make the next screaming character his victim. The only way to survive is by escaping the corn rows and this is no easy feat for the characters.
Spending eighty minutes in the cornfields with Simmon's imagination and his characters is a thrilling time. There is a mythos as to why the attacks are happening in this setting and there is a strategy to escape the fields. Planning is one approach, while putting the escape plan into action is much more difficult. Best laid plans fall apart, as do many of the characters.
This is a must see for fans of other cornfield themed horror films e.g. The Maze, Children of the Corn, and Dark Night of the Scarecrow. There is a reason that cornfields are so scary and that is because once you are lost in the cornfields, there is no easy path out.
SyFy will likely re-air this excellent feature film, but right now there are no scheduled showings. A DVD release date is currently slated for March 29th, 2011. So, get lost in the cornfields for a bit, with Simmons' Husk and prepare for events to go very wrong!
Acting/believability/interpretation: 8 out of 10 (excellent acting, some one-dimensional character, but the actors show appropriate emotions).
Plot/writing/story: 8 out of 10 (short, sweet, begins quickly and there are no pacing issues, thrilling).
Overall: 8 out of 10 (a little short in the runtime).
A promotional trailer for the SyFy premiere of Husk is here:
One Minute Promo' Trailer
Husk is available below, with other cornfield set horror features:
Advertise Here - Contact me Michael Allen at 28DLA
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Posted in: 2011,after dark films,after dark originals,brett simmons,cornfields,dvd artwork,husk,movie review,scarecrow horror movie review,syfy
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