Damned by Dawn AND The Dark Lurking

Horrorphile

follow this blog

1040 followers

3571 daily readers

rank of 1

E-mail Subscription

Receive an e-mail notification of new posts on this site:

Damned by Dawn AND The Dark Lurking

April 22nd 2010 00:45

Two Aussie features made (more than two years ago) on the smell of a banshee’s rags and the cost of James Cameron’s catering, fueled by passion and determination, heavily influenced by two master technicians of the trade, flexing hardware muscle and visual gusto, and spouting diabolical dialogue from performances as ripe as rotten fruit; Brett Anstey’s Damned by Dawn (2010) and Greg Connors’ The Dark Lurking (2010), their first features, screened at this year’s A Night of Horror International Film Festival.

Renee Willner as Claire

Damned by Dawn, the product of The Amazing Krypto Bros. (Mr. Anstey, who wrote the screenplay, co-produced, directed, and spent more than a year working on the digital effects), was shot in the bushes of Victoria in the freezing dead of night by a skeleton crew and a small cast headed by Renee Willner as Claire. The bare bones of the tale is thus: a family arrive at a farmhouse to visit relatives, the same time as a thunderstorm, which brings with it the piercing screeches of a terrifying banshee (a malevolent witch) hellbent on making their lives a misery.

Bridget Neval as the banshee

Although director Anstey claimed the major inspiration for the movie were the English Hammer movies, the most obvious influence I could see was Sam Raimi’s The Evil Dead (1982), with a dash of Dario Argento’s Suspiria (1977) creepiness thrown in for good measure (lots of mist and a ghostly figure swirling in the darkness beyond the safety of the windows). The frisky camerawork, ghostly palette, and special effects were solid and showcase Anstey’s visual talents; it’s definitely a spooky, atmospheric little shocker.

The movie is briskly paced, but saves its aces once Claire is left to fend for her own, after the banshee (Bridget Neval) has dispatched with everyone else. Renee Willner gives the sustained performance amidst some pretty average acting chops. Damned by Dawn would’ve worked better as an extended short devoid of dialogue, rather than a drawn-out 80-minute feature hampered by shoddy acting and shoddier dialogue. Still, I’m sure Brett Anstey will go on to bigger and better things.

Gregory Connors’ world was changed when his folks brought back Aliens (1986) on VHS one evening. More than twenty years later Greg Connors made (and has finally released) his homage tribute feature to James Cameron’s epic sf-horror-actioner (there’s even a character named Yutani). Not to mention numerous other movies, most obviously Predator (1986) and Feast (2005), but also Starship Troopers (1997), Assault on Precinct 13 (1976), Resident Evil (2002), Species (1995), The Thing (1982), the list goes on and on. A motley bunch trapped underground fighting hideous killing machine creatures lurking on the surface and in the dark within.

Tonia Renee as Lena

The curious thing is despite the deeply derivative nature of Connors’ The Dark Lurking, it still feels fresh and vibrant. There’s a distinct creative energy which Connors has harnessed, and he’s channeled and executed it impressively. The production values and technical aspects of the movie are what stand out head and shoulders above everything else; the sets and art direction, special effects make-up and creature design, editing and soundtrack are all top-notch, especially considering the movie’s budget was around $180,000.

Phillipe Deseck as Phillipe

The restrictive sets and close-up shooting style does present a very claustrophobic atmosphere, which reminded me of John Carpenter’s Dark Star (1974), making the entire movie feel like a chamber piece. However this intense proximity to the actors worsened the movie’s glaring and jarring faults: dreadful acting across the board and dialogue so rank you could smell it. Connors has defended the movie by claiming he’d made it as a comedy, because the premise was so silly, but even with a comedy you still need solid performances … and less cringe-inducing dialogue.

Limitations aside, The Dark Lurking is definitely a calling card for Connors (like Brett Anstey’s Damned by Dawn), and there’s no doubt he’ll be enjoying commercial success before too long. Both Dark and Dawn are visually striking, punchy and atmospheric. Both wear their influences blatantly on their sleeves, and that’s okay. However, both directors need to focus on the same key areas: performance and dialogue, so they can rise above their B-movie trappings and ultimately enjoy a little cult status.

Here are the impressive trailers for Damned by Dawn and The Dark Lurking: