Brendan Jesus
If there’s one thing to fear, it’s doctors. Who wants to know that your ticker isn’t beating right, that you have to stop eating fried food, or…that coal you’ve been inhaling your entire professional career had an adverse reaction on you? The third block of horror shorts brings us to the crippling world of medical horror, a subgenre where science and real-life don’t necessarily need to be hyperbolized to make us frightened. This block didn’t have the content I was expecting it to have, instead, it took it in a fun and supremely creative direction making us scared of work, AI, little kids that grow too fast, and green screens.
Occupational Hazard, Written and Directed by Ursula Ellis
It’s pretty surprising that there isn’t a huge list of genre films surrounding coal mining/coal mines. I can really only think of a few, to none, pieces of genre content that take place in or around mines like My Bloody Valentine…or maybe Until Dawn to a certain extent, but it’s a really interesting setting and concept to use. Occupational Hazard does a good job of setting up the mine, and what resides within, as the perfect antagonist. This short starts with a way too beautiful establishing shot of a mine before we are introduced to the certain cosmic evil that lies deep in the rock.
The acting may leave a little to be desired, but overall the acting is fairly solid throughout. Once the green fumes take hold of Diana (Virginia Newcomb), it ramps up pretty quickly to a cosmic horror ending. The practical effects look absolutely great, and extremely gross, but in the best way possible. There are a few bits of computer-generated green fumes that for the most part look well done, with the exception of only one moment where it looks very out of place. Occupational Hazard is a good example of what can really be done with coal mines, even though it takes up very little of the short, and what can lurk deep in the dark crevices.
Freya, Written and Executive Produced by Rhona Rees, Directed by Camille Hollett-French
While the idea of AI and Alexa’s going on the fritz is on the rise in the genre, all that matters is how you can make it different and make it stand out on its own. There was such a deep level of unease, cringe, and sadness in Freya, which really does help it stand on its own. Thinking back on this, the idea that we may not even be that far away from this type of life is absolutely terrifying. Freya is an app that controls literally everything; if you order too much wine it will let you know, if you’re overweight it will put you on a government-controlled diet, it’s dystopian all the way. Oh, also, imagine living in a world where you get fired if you’re pregnant, but are provided a “growth credit.” That’s absolutely nuts.
One of the things that makes this short feel more real and gives it more credence is that it is not overly futuristic. There aren’t any ideas in this that are unbelievable or unattainable. Set aside the horrors of this, Freya just made me extremely sad, but in a good way. I felt such a deep emotion for what Jade (Rhona Rees) was going through. My final thought when this short ended was that I hope we don’t ever get to this point.
They Call Me David, Written by Liam Dunn, Directed by Lindsay Hallam
For some reason, I have always felt a deep unease in regards to black and white science tapes, like the things you stumble upon in “real” found tape compilations on YouTube. They Call Me David just fed right into that weird phobia of mine. What looks like a mixture of real black and white film mixed with new black and white shots, They Call Me David is a look into the science experiments about a kid who has Scanners like abilities and seems to be stuck in this lab with a few other pig-nosed children. That’s not a commentary on children, there are actual pig-like noses on their faces.
The sound design works really well with the interstitials of color film, creating a deep sense of dread. Shots of people covered in blood and scenes of beautiful color flowers break through the chilling black and white footage to give us a sense of relaxation before we are thrust back into the black and white world of horror. They Call Me David is an ambiguously unsettling piece of science horror that you wouldn’t be soon to forget.
Hysteria, Written and Directed by Jenna Payne
I am really unsure how to go about this one. On one hand, it may be genius, and on the other hand, it may be the complete opposite. Looking into this one more it was made during lockdown, a la Host, and made completely against a green screen backdrop. This creates a very flat-looking image, that is also not helped by the acting. Hysteria is about Cassandra (Wendy Abraham) who is unsuccessfully navigating the medical field with an undiagnosed chronic illness but is not being taken seriously by doctors. Unfortunately, this is a thing that many women have to deal with in the real world and this is where my weariness about this short comes into play.
It was very easy for me not to take this film seriously with the look, acting, and green screen issues that are persistent…but in hindsight that may be the point of it. Just because it’s not a polished film in any way, doesn’t mean that it shouldn’t be taken seriously. I have seen many shorts and features that are way worse than this, but if they have a clear message it can still be taken at face value regarding the message. That may be the point of this short. Women aren’t taken seriously by their doctors and negative things happen because of it, which is the core point here. And on top of it all, Payne did something that the majority of people didn’t do during the lockdowns: make a movie.
