Tell Me How I Die Can Hardly Be Seen: A Film Review

*full disclosure: an online screener of this film was provided by the film's pr' firm.

**there are spoilers here.

Director: D.J. Viola.

Writers: James Hibberd, Rob Warren Thomas and D.J. Viola.

Cast: Nathan Kress, Virginia Gardner, Kirby Bliss Blanton and Ryan Higa.

Tell Me How I Die is a horror-lite film from second time feature film director D.J. Viola. Written by a trio of writers, James Hibberd, Rob Warren Thomas, and D.J. Viola, the film deals with illicit drug trials and a memory enhancing toxin. The side effects of the drug give some of the protagonists the ability to see into the future. It also gives the same powers to a ruthless villain. The film is hampered by poor lighting; characters can barely be seen in some scenes and some elements cannot be seen at all. The antagonist does not make an appearance until the final act. Thus, Acts I and II suffer from some slow pacing. Meanwhile, the character Den's (Nathan Kress) martyr-like actions and poor choices are hard to watch. Tell Me How I Die is a lackluster horror outing, with a number of poor film elements preventing enjoyment of this title.

In the story, several desperate college students have signed up for a series of drug trials. They need some quick cash. Unfortunately for them, the drug they are about to take has killed some and caused others to lose their minds. The side effects of this drug also give some of the characters the ability to see into a blood-filled future. Once foreseen, few of the characters can avoid their future murders. Meanwhile, the villain, Pascal (Ethan Peck), is hiding off-screen for way too long.

Den's time is limited and so is the light.

The film's worst element is its lighting. Dark lighting is appropriate for the Winter months and for the subsequent exterior shots. However, interiors should be well lighted, so characters' actions and interactions can be seen. The lighting crew kept the interiors under lit, for some reason, in a number of scenes. For instance, at the fourty-six minute mark the character Curtis (Christopher Allen) is fatally wounded. He appears to be grabbing at his neck. But, the viciousness of his wound cannot be seen. In it's place - a shadow. Shortly thereafter, a security guard looks out into the blackness, outside. He sees a character and shouts out to the figure. But, viewers will not be able to see even the briefest of outlines, of the intruder. These are two examples of how the lighting failed to illuminate the scenes; sadly, there were many more.

The villain makes an appearance much too late in the film; he is also a flat character. While trying to avoid spoilers, these drug trials have been taking place for quite awhile. A former experimentee has not reacted well to the drug. He is now psychotic and also able to see into the future. This is obviously a challenge for the protagonists. They have nowhere to hide. His late appearance dampens the occurrence of conflict, in early scenes. Tension is also missing in these opening scenes. Once he finally does show up, events quickly reach a climax. Then, the film is over. More tension and terror could have been included in earlier scenes, via a minor villain, or with more appearances by the antagonist, Pascal. As it is, Acts I and II go by very slowly and dryly.

This film also includes one of this film fan's biggest pet peeves, the inclusion of male martyrs or disposable male characters. The character Den is not only a flat character, but his actions are completely unbelievable. Den, the supposed hero of the film, is all too willing to throw his life away for a fairly bland character, Anna (Virginia Gardner). Neither character shows much virtue, nor intelligence. Yet, Den is willing to re-enter the research facility, even after the hardships of escape, to find her. Anna is practically a stranger to him! Still, he is willing to face a serial killer to find her. Can't Anna save herself? From one source, "if the story requires random anonymous characters to die just to move the plot forward, they'll likely be male." Den is practically an anonymous character and developed poorly. His only trait - a willingness to die for a female character. Male martyrdom, in film, is an overdone trope. The writers of Tell Me How I Die have taken this cliche and gone overboard. And, often in film, the value of male characters is only measured according to their ability to throw their own lives away, for female ones.

Tell Me How I Die is set for a wide Video-on-demand release, on September 16th, 2016. This film fan would not recommend this title for a number of reasons. Many scenes are difficult to see. Thrills, terror and tension are almost all but absent in the first fourty minutes, of the film. Meanwhile, the character Den is too motivated by self-sacrifice, to empathize with. As well, the villain is all but absent. In the meantime, you might be wondering what better films there are out there, if watching this title. This viewer would recommend Bloodwork (2012) aka Bloodworx over this very average semi-horror outing.

Overall: 6.25 out of 10.

A trailer for this film is available here: A Tell Me How I Die Trailer on 28DLA

An interesting article on how men are often portrayed in film:

"Men are the Expendable Gender" at TV Tropes

Picture credit (Den): the LA Times: A Tell Me How I Die Review at LA Times


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Posted in: 2016,characters,drug use,horror movie review,movie,movie review,review,science fiction,serial killer,serial killer movie review,story,villain