Hooptober... And Then There Were Nine

3rd Kill

I don't know if it's just because I know Stephen Thrower is there in his parlour looking like the trendiest film nerd in the world, explaining in his dulcet tones why all these US regional horror films are actually quite good (I assume he's still there talking to this day, however many years after Arrow interviewed him for the American Horror Project releases), but I've really come to dig these lo-fi, slow-build, psychological flicks.

To say nothing much happens for the first couple of acts of The Premonition would do it a bit of a disservice, I feel. It's just that the film comes at the action rather obliquely. We are effectively introduced to a couple of protagonists - Andrea, a neurotic woman who seems to be looking for her daughter, and Jude, her slightly creepy boyfriend (i.e. he's played by Richard Lynch) - who we eventually realise are the antagonists, a couple of nut-jobs who intend to kidnap little Janie from her adoptive parents, played by Sharon Farrell (she who gave birth to the monster baby in It's Alive - I'm assuming this is not a direct sequel) and Edward Bell.

Or are they just nut-jobs? Is Andrea actually a witch? Or does Sharon Farrell have psychic powers? Or is that Andrea? Or is it Jude? I think it might actually be Jude, who continues with the plan to kidnap the kid beyond the point it is being driven by Andrea's wishes. I do have to admit, I'm not sure I had any idea what the hell was going on in this movie. The thing is, right up until the end, I really thought I knew exactly what was going on, only for the rug to get pulled and leave me completely confused.

Weirdly, I feel OK with all this ambiguity. I'm not sure it's at all intentional on the film-maker's part, but it still feels like a reasonable success of an effort regardless.

Best Kill (may contain traces of spoiler)

Yeah, not really that sort of movie - this isn't trying to be Friday the 13th. There are a couple of kills off camera. Actually, the most impressive moment is the discovery of a body in a lake. We see a chain being winched back from the lake and then a body is dragged up from beneath the surface which is very obviously an actor playing dead. Meanwhile, the rest of the cast are standing around in winter coats. If you ever thought acting was a cushy job, think again. Jesus, that sort of stuff is likely to give you pneumonia. Other than that, there's nothing much to speak of except one of those movie strangulations where the strangler has his hands around someone's neck for like three seconds before they just drop dead. Not very convincing.