Since The Blair Witch Project opened the floodgates to the seemingly never-ending low budget ‘found footage’ subgenre, we’ve been subjected to all manner of shaky-cam nonsense – usually based on ‘true events’ and set in the deep, dark woods. The other angle filmmakers without much cash can go for is the pseudo-documentary. Thankfully, Death Island: Paranormal Retribution does something a little different with those elements, resulting in a surprisingly good film.
The backstory here is the disappearance in 1989 of a group of youngsters on Garden Island, just off the Michigan coast. Decades later, an independent documentary team plan to visit the island and see if they can uncover any proof of an alleged supernatural presence. They begin with assembling people involved with the sad occurrence, including a brother of one of the kids, their supervisor at the time and the first responder, who paint a sombre and tragic picture. The team also discover that the whole island could well be an ancient Indian burial ground, which they hope will send their paranormal devices off the scale.
When they get there, however, they discover things may not be as easy as they hoped and the island might not be as uninhabited as people thought.
With its familiar premise and obviously low budget, one would be forgiven for thinking a trip to Death Island might be a wasted one. We’re happy to report that isn’t the case. The cast are superb; they not only behave naturally but once things begin going wrong (and, of course, they do), they generally don’t fall into the trap of overacting. Nor does it replicate the Blair Witch scares too much (there are some crying-to-camera moments later on, but at least there’s not as much snot).
Death Island opens with the reports of the kids’ disappearance interspersed with moments from later in the film, which succeeds in disorientating the viewer; this is followed by a convincing talking heads section of the paranormal and film crew, and their preparation. This section is only let down by a news report purporting to be from 1989 that is unconvincing, but this is a small flaw in an otherwise well-made production.
The faux-documentary approach works perfectly for set-up, but as some very horrible things begin happening, it does feel more like a real movie despite the director’s best attempts to keep us within the format. It’s fortunate that by the time that happens, we’re fully invested in the characters and the situation.
Some of the things mentioned are actually based on fact (the island is, apparently, the site of an Indian burial ground), which certainly helps draw the viewer in. This, added to the natural, believable performances, help build a palpable atmosphere that certainly takes one off guard. It’s actually much better than the film that arguably inspired it.
DEATH ISLAND: PARANORMAL RETRIBUTION / CERT: TBC / DIRECTOR & SCREENPLAY: CHRIS PENNEY / STARRING: CRAIG BOUWENS, NICOLE BRAY, CHUCK HARB / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW (US)
