[Review] Third Contact

Stars; Tim Scott-Walker, Jannica Olin, Oliver Browne, Cristiana Dell’ Anna
Writer/Director; Simon Horrocks
Running Time; 85 mins

Whilst battling his own depressive demons psychotherapist David Wright becomes alarmed when two of his patients commit suicide and decides to investigate the cause. Clue after clue lead the increasingly obsessive therapist on the precipice of his mental stability that lead to questions of existence and a glimpse of the thin veil between life and death.
Good science fiction is as much about the journey into and future of the human condition as it is about alien invasions and space travel. "Third Contact" definitely falls into the former taking the viewer on a chilling journey into the dark recesses of the human psyche, a form of warped inner space exploration wrapped in a gripping piece of cinema.

Filmed on a budget of just £4,000 and with volunteers made up of both cast and crew, Horrocks has unleashed a visually engaging emotionally charged science fiction film noir. The black and white grainy footage broken up with the occasional use of colour flashback cutaways, drawing influence from much of the early works of David Lynch, are at the heart of the uncomfortable feel of the film. The visuals and gritty North London locations work well in creating a dark and disturbing atmosphere and reflecting the equally  unsettling journey of the principal character Dr David Wright.  

Horrocks' script is packed full of a variety of scientific and philosophical themes challenging the human perception of life & death and space & time. Those with academic expertise or passing interest stemmed from science fiction or episodes of "The Big Bang Theory" will appreciate the interjection of many aspects of quantum mechanics. These play a major role in the story with plenty of detail yet never detracting from the story of David’s journey and investigations. The imagery of the film and themes of the script act as the binding agent for a story that is an allegory for depression. The spiralling decent into a frustrating cycle of angst struggling to make sense of ourselves and the world are as subtle as the proverbial brick. It is this aspect which lies at the film's heart forcing the audience to understand (or even empathise) the effects of depression and the reasons why wanting to leave this life have overwhelming appeal.

As well as an intellectually stimulating visceral script and stunning visuals, the story and ideas are brought to life thanks to the performances of the cast mainly Tim Scott-Walker as the tragic Dr Wright. Scott-Walker encapsulates Wright’s spiralling decent into madness brilliantly with seemingly authentic touches of torturous angst. His performance is so emotionally charged the viewer is left feeling as if they had experienced a disturbing yet satisfying fairground ride. The rest of the cast, Oliver Browne as Karl one of Wright's patients who might have the key to the unfolding mystery and Jannica Olin as Erika the sister of one of  Wright's deceased patients, provide excellent support.

"Third Contact" stimulates both the senses and the intellect keeping viewer engaged until the big reveal which probably poses more questions than answers, perhaps true hallmark of good intelligent science fiction.



The film is currently crowdfunding one night only screenings via the IndieGoGo crowdfunding platform. More details can be found on the Third Contact visit. Click here to find a showing near you.

UPDATE; Third Contact is now available to stream or download. Click here to learn more and view

Documentary Tackling Shark Finning Seeks Crowdfunding Help

The ocean has fallen foul to the ravages of human appetites including whaling, excessive fishing draining stocks, and the practice of corralling dolphins for captivity or food as depicted in the chilling documentary The Cove. Philip Waller's documentary, Extinction Soup looks to expose yet another slice of oceanic savagery, shark finning. Writer, producer and director Waller is looking for funds through crowdfunding platform IndieGoGo to cover post production costs for a film that looks set to highlight and bring about legal changes to curb shark finning, a practice that could have devastating effects on the environment.

Shark finning is the practice of capturing sharks and sawing off their fins before casting the now mutilated sharks back into the ocean. The fins are usually sold to restaurateurs to be used into he delicacy that is shark fin soup. The sharks carcasses are discarded back into the ocean dead or alive, with many going days even weeks dying painfully from their wound. It is estimated that around 70 million sharks per year are mutilated and killed for this dish despite being illegal in many parts of the world. Californian filmmaker and adventurer Philip Waller has teamed up with activist and shark swimmer Stefanie Brendl to make Extinction Soup. On board to help bring this important project to the masses is producer Sidney Sherman, whose own success with crowdfunding saw the short film Reboot come to life, and Reboot alumnus Travis Aaron Wade serving as co-producer. The team are hoping that the film will expose practice to a worldwide audience and educate as well bring pressure to the world's governments to bring about effective legislative changes to end shark finning.

Filming has completed thanks to self-funding by the filmmakers but requires a lot of post production work. The funds being raised through IndieGoGo will be used to cover this cost. The sum of $30,000 is being sought to produce the film's music, graphics and titles, audio mixing as well as licensing costs, and none of it will be used to compensate the filmmakers. If the campaign is successful then the makers are aiming for Extinction Soup to be released around May 2014.  To date the campaign has raised over $25,000 but with less than ten days left till the deadline the race is on to find the remanding funds.



In return for their pledge donors will be in line for various rewards starting from the usual thanks and acknowledgments from the filmmakers to digital downloads and DVD copies of the finished film, signed and exclusive merchandise. Those with over $1,000 to invest will receive the usual rewards plus producer, creditors as well as invitations to festival screenings. For the top end investors, i.e. $10,000 or more, they will be flown to Hawaii for a free shark tour courtesy Stefanie Brenda. It should be noted however that this will mainly be for US investors. Most importantly however investors can feel satisfied in helping bring an important film to fruition, one that aims to significantly reduce this cruel practice or even bring it to a halt through a global legal intervention. For more information and to make a donation please visit the campaign's IndieGoGo crowdfunding page. 

[Fright Fest Feature] Rediscovering Found Footage

Over the years I had grown increasingly tired of the "found footage" sub genre of horror. Most will be familiar with the format; a team of investigators or film makers venture into some remote part of the world to look into a grisly event and disappear. Sometime later however their recording equipment is found intact complete with footage which is extracted, edited and presented to cinema audiences worldwide. What makes these films popular is the inference they are true stories and executed properly, contain a gritty realism as seen from the players' point of view drawing audiences into the unfolding scary events. It is an interesting format that works well but unfortunately has seen that market become somewhat over-saturated  Fright Fest features a bevy of such found footage films which seem to have breathed new life into the format.

Principally, found footage films such as Blair Witch Project and Cannibal Holocaust, are popular with studios as they are relatively cheap to make. It is usually best to feature unknown actors as more famous ones will increase the budget and take away any realistic element.  The actors can be included in the technical process and given cameras to film their own scenes as they did with Blair Witch. From a creative point of view however found footage films give scope for the actors to improvise and the filmmakers to create a real sense of atmosphere using a wide array of filming techniques. However with so many such films on the market it has been a case of there being more bad films than good, leaving many fans a little jaded. 

This year's Fright Fest screenings featured a number of found footage films that have challenged the audience perceptions of this sadly over used format. Titles that have impressed Fright Festers include Bobcat Goldthwait's Willow Creek about a couple who hope to catch sight of the infamous Big Foot, and Paranormal Diaries; Clophill, a film investigating witchcraft and satanic rituals. Here is a look at a selection of found footage films featured at Fright Fest.

The Dyatlov Pass Incident

Sitting in the wrong seat having sauntered in just as the movie started, where I expected disappointment I was pleasantly surprised, the best of which was the joy of watching a Renny Harlin film on the big screen again. As timely as my train journey into the big city all the cliches arrived on cue; the true story backdrop, five young camera wielding investigators, interviews with the yokels and a last hurrah before venturing out into the snow covered treacherous mountains, perhaps never to be seen again.

Watch enough found footage films and these aspects creep in and make you feel as if you are essentially watching the same film over again. However Harlin has plenty to work with in Vikram Weet's intriguing script. Despite the film quality being a little too crisp for "found footage" there is no absence of tension or atmosphere. The reveal at the end might leave some viewers disappointed but with a conservative running time, and some decent performances, Dyatlov Pass set a fair standard for raised expectations of what was to follow. 

Frankenstein's Army

Reading the synopsis of this wonderfully entertaining and eerie production that really pushes the boundaries of creativity, it is fair to say that the "real" story element was bundled up and thrown out of the window. The story again has the usual elements; a rag tag group (this time Russian soldiers) venturing into the wilderness in search of another rag tag group who have gone missing. Yes there is a filmmaker who accompanies them but if you are wondering why a Russian filmmaker during World War II is armed with a seemingly modern day camera, this is dealt with quite comically in the film. 

During the height of World War II, a team of Russian soldiers venture into enemy held territory in search of their comrades who went missing. Accompanying them is a filmmaker with orders to record the journey as part of a propaganda film. Their investigation leads them to a compound where Hitler had commissioned a certain mad scientist to build him the ultimate army. Dutch director Richard Raaphorst's film was entertaining and engaging on many fronts mainly the tensions between the soldiers as the film progresses, the setting and genuine sense of atmosphere and of course the wonderfully macabre creations that unleash some creative and bloody mayhem.  
 

The Conspiracy

Christopher MacBride's entry into the found footage cinematic battle draws the viewer into a world that many tend to dismiss but still can't help but be fascinated with; the world of the conspiracy theory. From Area 51 to the September 11 attacks the conspiracy theorist with a hazy combination of wild eyed paranoia and logical scientific examination has helped cast shadows of doubt on much of what goes on around the world. All the trademarks of found footage are there, investigators in search of a missing person delving into sinister goings on, hidden cameras and a terrifying revelation to the point of cheesy cliche. However it works eerily well in its execution and treatment of the subject matter. 

Where The Conspiracy works is in its documentary format giving a high level of authenticity that is lacking from many other films of this type. Using this eerie realistic feel, MacBride introduces the conspiracy theory elements in great detail and whether you believe in them or not, many of such theories have an air of truth and convincingness to make one stop and think. Unlike so many other found footage films, its scares do not lie in the supernatural but in the far more terrifying reality of greed and power. The ultimate reveal is a little far fetched but all in all The Conspiracy has tension and and atmosphere to boot and is almost a guaranteed conversation starter about the existence of secret societies and whether or not conspiracy theorists might just be right after all.  

v/h/s/ 2

Horror anthologies are back with a vengeance with some of the biggest names from independent cinema contributing a segment which combined launch an all out war on the human senses. The rapper story is that of two private investigators hired to search for a woman's missing son. They arrive at his apartment and find a pile of videotapes with a recorded instruction to play them in a specific order. As each horrifying segment is viewed the grisly nature of the young man's disappearance is revealed. 

Of all the found footage PoV (point of view) style films featured at Fright Fest v/h/s 2 is by far the most entertaining for light scares and lots of laughter, with Safe Haven, co-directed by The Raid's Gareth Evans being the star player. Dispensing with all the authentic documentary style with a story bogged down with facts, v/h/s 2 is out thrill from start to finish and succeeds. All the stories are told from a variety of recorded PoV films ranging from a prosthetic eye enabling its wearer to see dead people to a helmet cam of a zombie cyclist. The array of well known indie directors including Evans, Adam Wingard (You're Next) and the found footage master Eduardo Sanchez (Blair Witch Project) each bring their own brand of suspense and humour to their individual segments all linked together with the engaging underlining story. This is the perfect example of taking a familiar format and having lots of fun with it and still able to conjure the scares.

I can honestly say the Fright Fest has restored my faith in the found footage genre although there is still a barrage of awful titles to trawl before you get the to good stuff. Still, it just goes to show that a familiar formula can still be tinkered with to create something that is imaginative, filled with scares and humour aplenty.