“U Are the Universe”
After Earth explodes, Ukrainian space trucker Andriy Melnyk becomes the last person in the universe until he receives a call from Catherine, a French woman on a distant space station. Despite the obstacles, Andriy decides to find her.
Andriy (Volodymyr Kravchuk) works as a space trucker at some undisclosed time in Earth’s future. It’s apparent from the opening scenes that he’s probably not too good at his job and is more than likely about to be fired. What feels like the setup for a potentially larger story proves to be a non-starter when nuclear bombs cause the Earth to explode. Andriy is now the sole human survivor. Or so he thought… After sending a message, he gets a response from Catherine (Alexia Depicker), a survivor on a faraway space station. Andriy decides to travel across space to see her.
Overall, I found “U Are the Universe” intriguing space drama. The movie is essentially a one-man show, minus the voice of his companion robot, Maxim (Leonid Popadko), and the messages coming from Catherine. Director Pavlo Ostrikov manages to keep things interesting. The movie is well-shot and acted. Honestly, I’d have probably given this one a higher rating if it hadn’t been for the ending. Ostrikov can’t decide when to end this story, allowing the film’s final moments to linger too long.
“U Are the Universe” recently had its US Premiere on September 21st at Fantastic Fest 2024
“Daddy’s Head”
A boy and his stepmother fear for their safety after an eerie creature resembling the boy’s recently deceased father visits them.
Directed by Benjamin Barfoot, “Daddy’s Head” follows a boy and his stepmother after the death of the boy’s father. This was another movie that didn’t do much for me. It looked amazing and the actors were mostly decent. However, the story was generic and illogical and didn’t quite come together in the end. I wasn’t exactly sure what the director was going for with this film (besides the obvious theme of grief). Plus, it seemed like every scare in this movie was a jump scare. There was no attempt at building tension or establishing a mood. This is one that’s going to be distributed by Shudder. I’d just wait to stream it when it becomes available.
“Daddy’s Head” recently had its World Premiere on September 22nd at Fantastic Fest 2024
“Heretic”
Two young women of religion are drawn into a game of cat and mouse in the house of a strange man.
I’m shocked at how much I enjoyed this movie. The trailer looked promising, but I wasn’t expecting a film this good. “Heretic,” written and directed by Scott Beck and Bryan Woods, is a dialogue-driven, religious horror movie that challenges the idea of organized religion and faith. Why do we believe what we believe?
When Mormon missionaries Sister Paxton (Chloe East) and Sister Barnes (Sophie Thatcher) knock on the door of Mr. Reed (Hugh Grant), they expect to talk to him and his wife about their religious beliefs, hopefully converting and eventually baptizing them. Instead, the sisters find themselves caught up in a twisted game with their host.
From the moment Mr. Reed answers the door and invites them in, he begins releasing subtle red flags. Sister Paxton, the more worldly of the two, appears more hesitant and wary in comparison to the naive and eager-to-please Sister Barnes. The banter between the three is riveting, with all three performers expertly delivering their lines and sucking the viewer in. The script is aided by stylistic camerawork and an intense orchestral score. This is a film that doesn’t do what you expect it to, offering a number of surprises throughout.
Beck and Woods deftly handle the subject matter. The film has an edge without falling into sacrilege. It propels along without giving much breathing room. Although the film is mostly dialogue, there are some grisly visuals. It’s not too explicit, but enough that I feel like a warning for the squeamish is fair. This movie might not be everyone’s cup of tea, but it kept me glued to my seat the entire time.
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