Review Category: Movie

A group of twentysomething strangers carpooling on a cross-country road trip find themselves stranded in the middle of nowhere by a flat tyre. Almost immediately, they begin being picked off by a sniper and must frantically figure out how they can escape.

If not done well, films driven by pure malevolence can often end up as exercises in tedium. When it’s immediately made clear how little anything that happens actually matters, then why should you care? Fortunately, despite (or perhaps because of) Downrange’s nihilistic hopelessness, it’s a masochistically enthralling experience. Director Ryûhei Kitamura, previously responsible for the likes of the bleak bloodbath of The Midnight Meat Train and the hyperviolent insanity of Versus, brings us a vindictive barrage of blood and bullets that demands your constant engagement.

Despite the absurdly basic setup it never feels like the plot is being padded out, the relentless intensity remaining at a constant level for the full 85-minute run time. More of a scenario than a story, various developments prevent things from becoming boring or repetitive, and events are kept streamlined by the complete omission of any explanation of who the sniper is or speculation over why he’s doing this. The characters undergo constant anguish and suffering both physical and mental, and even after they’re dead their bodies are subjected to further sadistic indignities as they become fodder for crows, wasps and flies as their corpse meat slowly begins rotting under the unforgiving heat of the naked sun.

Some bare-bones character development is afforded to those who last long enough, coming out through natural dialogue rather than the usual tactic of crowbarring in life details to artificially generate empathy for someone right before they’re killed. This is aided by the conceit of the characters coming together via a car-sharing app, meaning that despite them all being together they don’t actually know each other. Thus, any unprompted offering of personal information sounds far less jarring, and it also means that unit cohesion is much harder to come by since it’s that much more difficult for the characters to understand or predict each other’s reactions.

The cast of unfamiliar actors prevents predictions of the order in which characters will die (or the stunt deaths of named actors being killed off early on), forcing you to become invested in each of them. Each viewer will likely respond to different characters for various reasons, meaning that their favourites could well end up dead without a moment’s notice, and the seemingly inescapable situation makes you wonder how any of them can possibly make it out alive.

A brutal and uncaring assault on your sensibilities delivered with the precision impact of one of its sniper’s bullets, Downrange is spiteful, malicious, mean-spirited and utterly compelling.

DOWNRANGE / CERT: TBA / DIRECTOR: RYÛHEI KITAMURA / SCREENPLAY: RYÛHEI KITAMURA, JOEY O’BRYAN / STARRING: KELLY CONNAIRE, STEPHANIE PEARSON, ROD HERNANDEZ, ANTHONY KIRLEW / RELEASE DATE: TBA

If some nostalgic bells are ringing when you hear about a ‘little vampire’, you are cursed with the memory of that 2000 family comedy starring Richard E. Grant. Both that and The Little Vampire 3D are based off Angela Sommer-Bodenburg’s book series Der kleine Vampir and share two cast members in the form of Downton Abbey’s Jim Carter and Alice Krige from Silent Hill. The story is simple; Tony, a ‘mortal’ boy meets Rudolph the vampire boy. They become friends and unite against some bumbling enemy and his whiney sidekick.

It’s a limp affair throughout, drained of any substance. The vampire characters are horrifically cardboard and you can tick them off as you go. Controlling father? Yep. A younger sister claiming the moral high ground who spontaneously gets the hots for her human acquaintance? Oh yes. Throw in some over-the-top distant relatives and a fawning mother, and even a vampiric comedy cow cannot compensate for the dreariness.

There are charming moments, like Rudolph introducing himself to Tony. Movies like this though really have to be charming throughout to satisfy adults and kids alike. Think of Toy Story. Or anything from Studio Ghibli. This just doesn’t deliver consistently, and you will be dragging yourself through what is, in reality, a modest running time.

The plot is clunky, jumping between scenarios that are all pretty much reinventions of the same thing – bad guys chase Rudolph and Tony, who subsequently escape through the magic of flight. Speaking of which, since when did vampires fly as vampires? What happened to the wholesome bat? Asides that peculiar detail, there is little invention. Little to keep you entertained beyond the visual appeal, which itself just barely stacks up against expectations.

The animation is not exactly below par, but it lacks the obvious quality and flair of what Pixar consistently deliver. What directors Richard Klaus and Karsten Kiilerich do get right is the aesthetic. The inner mid-2000s emo will be resurrected within you when you lay envious eyes on Rudolph’s fancy get-up. Same goes for his brother Gregory – both voiced by Rasmus Hardiker, who does not lose face by any means here. The whole cast fill their roles well, but it barely goes noticed underneath too many tired gags and bland dialogue. All interspersed with a painful number of puns, only one of which is actually funny (and it’s not even about vampires).

If you have young kids and since Hotel Transylvania 3 isn’t out yet, then it’s a perfectly innocent family day out by most measurements. Just don’t go expecting a refreshingly new family movie or sharply cut re-imagination of the vampire, or you will want to crawl into a coffin and die.

 

THE LITTLE VAMPIRE 3D / CERT: U / DIRECTORS: RICHARD CLAUS, KARSTEN KIILERICH / SCREENPLAY: RICHARD CLAUS & LARRY WILSON / STARRING: RASMUS HARDIKER, AMY SAVILLE, JIM CARTER, JOSEPH KLOSKA, PHOEBE GIVRON-TAYLOR / RELEASE DATE: MAY 25th

Expected Rating: 7 out of 10

It feels like only yesterday that longtime comic book fans were heading to their local cinema, heart in mouth, hoping that Deadpool was allowed to be, well, Deadpool and be done justice. That was back in 2016 and we ultimately had nothing to worry about. And now, the Merc with a Mouth is back for another round of action – only this time, he’s joined by some friends.

As the film opens, we find a downbeat Wade Wilson lost and simply wanting to be put out of his misery. Desperate to end it all, a chance encounter with Julian Dennison’s Russell alters Pooly-D’s mindset and gives him something to fight for. You see, Russell is a troubled soul who has had a tough ride to date; Wade seeing a lot of himself in the youngster. And like Wade, Russell, too, has certain abilities. The only problem is, Josh Brolin’s time-travelling, metal-armed, red-eyed badass Cable has turned up from a desolate future intent on killing Russell. With his back against the wall and having had his ass handing to him by Cable, Deadpool is forced to assemble a team: X-Force.

To veer any further into plot details would be heading towards spoiler territory, and we’re going to do our best to stay away from any sorts of spoilers in this review. Let’s just say that when we caught up with Stefan Kapicic – Colossus – before the film’s release, he warned us that there were plenty of surprises ahead, and he was certainly not wrong. Be it Easter eggs, breaking the fourth wall, shots at other superhero movies (both Marvel and DC), or simply outright shocks and surprises, Deadpool 2 is brimming with more than enough fan-pleasing spots to keep even the most ardent of fans on their toes. But away from those ‘easy please’ moments, Deadpool 2 really is so much more.

Again without lingering particularly on the plot, this is a film that takes the balls-out adventurous nature of its predecessor and amps every possible angle up to 11 (hey, Negasonic Teenage Warhead). While many will be overjoyed to see the violence even more brutal, the language even less suitable for your dear old granny, and the nods and winks even more grin-inducing, most importantly Deadpool 2 has even more heart and a stronger narrative than the fantastic first feature. This time out, the stakes feel even higher, and Deadpool 2 really is a roller coast of emotions, from all-out elaborate carnage, to genuine laugh-out-load moments, to fist-pumping moments of sheer awesomeness (the assembling and deploying of X-Force is a beauty to behold), to legitimately emotional beats (no, you’re tearing up!). Simply put, Deadpool 2 has somehow managed to take what worked so well with Tim Miller’s Deadpool and equal that, if not top it.

In terms of performances, Ryan Reynolds is obviously the headline act here, and he slices, shoots and quips his way through a multitude of moments. But the tale at play this time out allows Reynolds to explore a more serious Wade who is questioning his motive and mission in life. Don’t get us wrong, this is no deadpan drama, just we get to see the slightest glimpse at Wade Wilson when the smiles, wisecracks and bullets are put to one side. Similarly, the returning players of Morena Baccarin as Vanessa, TJ Miller as Weasel, Karan Soni as Dopinder, and Leslie Uggams as Bland Al all pick up right where they left off the first time around, managing to be pitch-perfect for the job at hand. For Stefan Kapicic’s Colossus, we get to see a little more from this most beloved of X-Men members here, and Colossus has a pivotal part to play in helping Wade out of his rut. Sadly, Brianna Hildebrand’s Negasonic Teenage Warhead does ultimately feel a little short-changed when it comes to screen time, although with such an array of new characters introduced that was always going to be a likely outcome. Still, when we do see Negasonic, she’s just as awesome as the first time around, and now she’s joined by Shioli Kutsuna’s adorable “Yukio”.

Now onto those other, key newcomers. Man, Zazie Beetz absolutely kills it as probability-driven mutant Domino. Beetz wears the bold and brash swagger of Domino like a second skin, stealing the movie whenever she’s on screen – regardless of how Wade may poke fun at her abilities. Then there’s Josh Brolin as Cable, the time-traveller who soon finds himself butting heads with Deadpool and later X-Force. Brolin brings the gravitas and military-esque discipline needed for the role, and he is the perfect straight man to the overall humour of the action so often playing out around him. And lastly, Julian Dennison deserves a whole bunch of praise for his performance as the tormented, ridiculously powerful young mutant at the centre of this tale. While he came on to the radar of many for his turn in Taika Waititi’s stunning Hunt for the Wilderpeople, the young New Zealander has taken that momentum and ran with it, putting in another stellar performance that helps to show off a little more of his range this time out. Similarly, John Wick‘s David Leitch increases his stock, seamlessly taking over the director’s chair from Tim Miller while also managing to put his own stamp on the picture. Leitch and the returning writing team of Rhett Reese, Paul Wernick, and Ryan Reynolds took what worked so well in Deadpool and evolved that in a way that just makes this feel bigger and better in terms of the comedy, action, and the consequences at stake.

All in all, as alluded to, Deadpool 2 matches if not betters its predecessor – which is quite the impressive feat. With plenty of genuine laughs, balls-out action sequences, and a whole lot of emotion and heart, this is the sequel that you’d hoped for. Oh, and be sure to stick around throughout the credits, for Deadpool 2 has one of the greatest mid-credits sequences we’ve seen to date.

DEADPOOL 2 / CERT: 15 / DIRECTOR: DAVID LEITCH / SCREENPLAY: RHETT REESE, RYAN REYNOLDS, PAUL WERNICK / STARRING: RYAN REYNOLDS, ZAZIE BEETS, JOSH BROLIN, JULIAN DENNISON, STEFAN KAPICIC, MORENA BACCARIN / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW

Expected Rating: 8 out of 10

In the dying days of the First World War, a bunker under the Western Front is located far behind the German line. Believed to have operated as a chemical weapons lab and military intelligence, fearful that it has been used to weaponise diseases, a team is sent to investigate, unaware of the extent of the horror they will uncover.

A perennial subgenre of horror movies is the supernatural infestation of a Nazi bunker, and even though WWI was fought against the German Empire rather than the National Socialist regime, many of the attendant tropes are present and correct.

Unusually for such a film there is a great deal of time spent on character development, and it’s quite some time before the infected soldiers of the bunker are encountered in all their slavering insane glory. Even more surprising is how little of the action involves combating rampaging rage monsters, with the plight of those remaining alive and human staying front and centre.

Some characters are inevitably more memorable than others, such as the PTSD-afflicted tunneller leading the excursion or the mad scientist doctor responsible for the outbreak, but even those with limited presence, such as a hypermasculine coke fiend who it’s easy to picture being played by Jason Statham, are given moments of attention. Even the German soldiers encountered who could so very easily have been reduced to anonymous antagonists are afforded a degree of characterisation.

In spite of this focus, the film is first and foremost a genre effort and never allows itself to forget that, trapping its characters in endless tunnels and behind ominous metal doors in a claustrophobic maze. The encroaching dread of any infected, despite being largely reduced to periodic distant howls and thumping echoing through the subterranean walls, still seem as though they could at any moment burst from a shadowy corner or unseen tunnel twist. Paranoia abounds within both the Allied and German groups, and even later when developing circumstances force certain opposing individuals together, even the need to work together against a greater danger doesn’t override their instinctive mistrust of the enemy.

Although not featured to as large a degree as you might expect, when it arrives the body horror becomes seared into your retinas, including occurrences such as an especially grisly autopsy scene, or thin white worm-like creatures flailing from the orifices of the dead with such repellent volatility it’s enough to put you off spaghetti for life.

A decent instalment of a recurrent subgenre, Trench 11 manages to be several films at once, each complementing the other in their amalgamation into a singularly realised tale of dread and terror.

TRENCH 11/CERTIFICATE: TBA / DIRECTOR: LEO SCHERMAN / SCREENPLAY: LEO SCHERMAN, MATT BOOI / STARRING: ROSSIF SUTHERLAND, ROBERT STADLOBER, CHARLIE CARRICK, SHAUN BENSON, TED ATHERTON / RELEASE DATE: TBA

Spookers is a documentary about the family-run haunted house attraction of the same name that operates on the site of Kingseat Hospital, a former psychiatric asylum outside of Auckland, New Zealand, told through the stories of its owners and performers.

Live action haunted houses haven’t yet made their way to the UK, so for us their appeal has been explored second hand in the likes of the excellent documentary The American Scream or the found footage garbage of The Houses October Built (aka The Houses of Halloween). Spookers provides some insight into their appeal and in particular how cathartic fear can be when you embrace the fun of being terrified in a safe environment, which is exactly why many of us watch horror movies in the first place.

The attraction’s performers discuss their characters and the different ways in which their nightly excursions into the weird have aided them, be it the escape from corporate drudgery, the ability to express themselves without judgement or the simple desire to meet new people. Despite the incongruity of people in horrific horror makeup holding perfectly ordinary conversations, the film mostly presents itself with affectionate seriousness with a few intentionally comical moments slipped in (it doesn’t take much imagination to guess what a radioed request to deal with a “code brown” refers to).

The film tells the details of the attraction’s development, interspersed with some history of the hospital itself and the treatment of the patients there, some of which was far worse than the imaginings of any horror film. The connotations of creating such a place on the grounds of a psychiatric hospital are not glossed over, acknowledging the fact that even in our supposedly enlightened times mental illness still remains heavily stigmatised, negative stereotypes riddling popular culture and adding to the lack of comprehension over the wide spectrum of conditions that constitutes it. Everyone is given the opportunity to put forward their view on the topic – in particular a former nurse-turned-performer and a former patient – with some believing the attraction to be harmless fun, while others think that perpetuating correlations between instability and violence can only serve to maintain people’s prejudices. There is no statement made of whose opinions carry more weight, instead leaving it to the viewers to make up their own minds.

An interesting stylistic choice comes from the re-enactments of the dreams and memories some of the interviewees relate, but after a while these interludes become intrusive, interrupting the anecdotes with unnecessary and intrusive artifice, and distracting from the straightforward fascination of simply listening to people talk. Aside from the serious discussion, the focus is mostly on the mismatched assortment of freaks (and we mean that in a positive sense) and the surrogate family they have found in each other.

Overall, Spookers is a film whose constituent parts don’t quite fit together, but nevertheless remains an eminently watchable piece of documentary filmmaking.

SPOOKERS/ CERTIFICATE: TBA / DIRECTOR: FLORIAN HABICHT / SCREENPLAY: VERONICA GLEESON, FLORIAN HABICHT / PETER O’DONOGHUE, SUZANNE WALKER / STARRING: BETH WATSON, ANDY WATSON, JULIA TUKIRI, DAVID PALU, HUIA APIATA, JUNEEN BORKENT / RELEASE DATE: TBA

After Maude collapses while studying medicine in Germany, she begins having nightmares that seem to be telling her where to find her twin sister Cleo, missing for a year and presumed dead. After returning home to Australia and discovering that Cleo’s fiancée is seeing the same things, and that the police officer investigating her disappearance has become obsessed with solving the case, the three of them embark on a search to uncover the truth.

Some films are made incoherent through bad filming, writing or editing choices, while others are purposefully disjointed with the intent of making you question what is and isn’t real. Rabbit is most definitely one of the second kind.

Despite being an amalgamation of familiar parts (psychic twin link, women running through woods, cryptic allusions, creepy cult) they fuse together into something far more distinctive than their familiarity would suggest, and considerably more unsettling.  The rural compound where Maude ends up has all the silent subjugation of a cult, and while it’s clear that there’s something very wrong going on, being unable to figure out exactly what it is amplifies the atmosphere of banally evil oppression. The emptiness of the Australian wilderness has seldom looked so beautifully threatening, the wide desolation paradoxically feeling claustrophobic.

The story progresses with the logic of a dream, often seeming like not enough has occurred to warrant the switching from one scene to the next, the fragmented flow inexorably dragging us with it whether we like it or not, as though the whole film is an extension of one of Maude’s nightmares from which she never awoke. It keeps the audience as confused as she is over the twisting perception of reality, never sure which aspect of what’s being experienced can be trusted.

The soundtrack is internationally intrusive, a little too loud and distorted to be merely supplemental to a scene, as though it’s purposefully preventing you from being able to properly take in what you’re seeing, forcing you to experience the same sense of permanent disorientation that Maude is enduring. That said, even as the noise remains distracting you gradually become acclimatised to it, rendering any silences somehow even more sinister, while a key scene features what is almost certainly the most beautiful rendition of a Rammstein song you’ve ever heard or ever will.

It’s a little frustrating that what’s actually going on remains too vague for much of the film, and when the intended themes are made clear you’re left with the feeling there should have been more exploration into them. Rabbit is an engrossing headscrew of a film, and while its narrative distortion is a part of what makes it so compelling, at the same time a little more focus on what it’s trying to say could have made it even more so.

RABBIT / CERTIFICATE: TBA / DIRECTOR: LUKE SHANAHAN / SCREENPLAY: LUJE SHANAHAN / STARRING: ADELAIDE CLEMENS, ALEX RUSSELL, VEERLE BAETENS, JONNY PASVOLSKY, CHARLES MAYER / RELEASE DATE: TBA

When his parents have to attend a funeral, Henry’s parents decide to spare his sensibilities and leave him with his grandfather on the old man’s isolated farm. When a storm descends and cuts them off from what little civilisation is available, family secrets and interaction with a creepy neighbour will make this visit one of Henry’s least favourite.

It’s generally advisable to avoid finding out too much about a film’s content before seeing it, lest any surprises or twists be made apparent to you ahead of time. There are also some films you’re better off going into knowing as little as possible or even nothing at all, and Knuckleball is most definitely one of these.

The plot is straightforward enough that there’s little you can say about it without spoiling its core developments (there are even several obvious comparisons to other films you could make), but suffice to say that Henry ends up alone in a dangerous situation where his very survival depends on his every decision made one moment to the next. But when trapped in a waking nightmare with no permanent safety to be found anywhere, how can he hope to escape?

The isolated setting of the rural farmhouse is augmented by the frozen desolation surrounding it, the pall of the winter sky hanging overhead like a harbinger of the perils to come, while the chill of the icy air seeps into every moment as though gradually draining life of all warmth. When things come to a head, the film is plunged into a blitz of relentless intensity, consistently maintaining a consistent pace that alternately exudes tension and terror in frantic scenes of DIY survival.

While undemanding, that’s not to say that the film is simplistic, and even though there are no issues with following what’s happening, less clear is their catalyst. The reasons behind the situation Henry find himself in are vaguely inferred before being gradually divulged, each new revelation making it ever clearer that it was only a matter of time before this particular powder keg was ignited. By the end not everything is completely spelled out, but enough clues are given that the whole story can be pieced together with little difficulty.

Having a film rely on the skills of a child actor is always a risky proposition, but in Luca Villacis the filmmakers struck gold. Appearing in almost every scene, he carries the weight of the material and maintains an engaging presence that each belies his young age, and proves that his impressive performance in a dual role in the inaugural season of the supremely sinister anthology series Channel Zero wasn’t a fluke. In the early interactions between him and Michael Ironside as the grandfather, he exudes a vulnerability without being overshadowed by one of the scariest actors alive, and likewise holds his own in later scenes opposite Turbo Kid’s Munro Chambers as the ominous neighbour who has secrets of his own.

The blunt simplicity of Knuckleball’s story makes it easy to dive into, while the intense action keeps you riveted right up to its closing moments.

KNUCKLEBALL / CERTIFICATE: TBA / DIRECTOR: MICHAEL PETERSON / SCREENPLAY: MICHAEL PETERSON, KEVIN COCKLE / STARRING: LUCA VILLACIS, MUNRO CHAMBERS, MICHAEL IRONSIDE, KATHLEEN MUNROE, CHENIER HUNDAL / RELEASE DATE: TBA

After the teenage Chloe gives birth, she returns to her home town to move back in with her disapproving mother. Soon afterwards, she begins glimpsing a ghostly entity that she becomes convinced is intent on harming her baby, and when her claims are dismissed by her mother and psychiatrist her very sanity comes under threat.

When unleashed upon cinemas in its native South Africa, Siembamba (aka The Lullaby) caused such an outcry it was swiftly yanked from the screens. Upon watching it, it’s not too hard to understand the reaction. A film that features murdered babies in its opening scene in the concentration camps of the Boer War, and follows a young mother who runs the risk of harming her own infant due to her encroaching madness, is going to have a tricky time finding an audience that won’t immediately dismiss it.

The film is named for an apparently real lullaby where the mother sweetly sings about brutally murdering her helpless child, and such a dissonance sets the tone for a film where a firm grip on what’s going on remains forever just beyond the grasp of viewer and characters alike.

Although primarily a supernatural chiller, the heavy themes are such that the supernatural element of the story is almost surplus to requirements, the horrors more thoroughly dealt with being those of motherhood rather than ghosts, and also touching upon sexual assault and mental illness.

While the haunting apparition is certainly compellingly sinister enough, in terms of ghost action the film doesn’t really offer much more than any B-class J-horror from fifteen years ago. Thankfully, the periodic jump scares aren’t overdone, and far more unease comes from the pervasive tension as Chloe’s behaviour becomes increasingly erratic and unpredictable.

Chloe’s deteriorating sanity goes unnoticed by her mother, who believes her mental state is a reaction to her being too young and immature for motherhood, and is far more interested in doling out sanctimonious recriminations than ensuring her daughter’s psychological wellbeing. Since almost the entire story is told from Chloe’s perspective, when it becomes apparent that she can’t differentiate between what’s actually happening in reality and what is the result of her fevered hallucinations, there’s no reason the audience should presume that they can. It gets to the point that as well as proving the entity real to keep her baby safe, she also needs it to be real to prove her sanity to those around her, as well as herself.

Deeply, deeply unsettling due to its content matter, as a study of the extremes of mental illness Siembamba is suitably unnerving, but as a ghost story it’s all a little too familiar.

SIEMBAMBA /CERTIFICATE: TBA / DIRECTOR: DARRELL ROODT / SCREENPLAY: TARRYN-TANILLE PRINSLOO / STARRING: REINE SWART, THANDI PUREN, BRANDON AURET, DEANRE REINERS / RELEASE DATE: TBA

When Annie returns home from a weekend away at work, she discovers that her slacker boyfriend Dave has constructed a cardboard maze in their living room and is somehow trapped inside. Ignoring his protestations to not follow him, she ventures inside alongside an assorted group of their friends, only to discover its inside is a vast cardboard labyrinth riddled with dangers that must be traversed if any of them want it make it out alive.

The very concept of Dave Made a Maze is completely ridiculous, and it’s by fully embracing this absurdity that its appeal shines bright. It’s structured like a horror film, featuring a sprawling warren of rooms laden with elaborate traps and origami monsters, but the action is filtered through a childlike innocence that leaves it appearing whimsical rather than scary.

Despite the film’s potentially farcical nature, it’s played completely straight and so allows the inherent comedy to come through on its own, becoming all the funnier as a result. Even though the tone is light-hearted the dangers facing the group are still very real, and it takes a decapitation and an impaling for the reality of what they’re up against to hit home. In keeping with the DIY craftwork of the maze’s construction, instead of full-on gore people’s bodies bleed yarn and silly string, while explosions of confetti take the place of arterial geysers.

The discussion of exactly how the maze came to be is briefly touched upon but swiftly abandoned, since from a narrative perspective it doesn’t really matter, and for the characters such knowledge won’t help them navigate it. By a labyrinth’s very nature the progression through it is disjointed and non-linear, and you get the feeling that the script was assembled using a list of ideas from which the best were selected and a story then weaved around them. Each successive room brings with it a new surreal irrationality, be it everyone spontaneously transforming into hand puppets, or visual perspective and the laws of physics being playfully messed with in a manner reminiscent of Alice in Wonderland, a comparison augmented throughout much of the film by a recurring motif of playing cards.

As well as the boundless creativity of the maze itself, the heart of the story is the relationship between Dave and Annie. While it’s in no way an unusual setup for a beautiful professional to have her life hamstrung by an immature boyfriend, it’s made clear that the pair genuinely love and want the best for each other. Rather than Annie becoming angry at Dave’s lack of direction being a problem for her, she is instead frustrated with him wasting his potential and wants him to figure his way out of his directionless rut because doing so will make him happier. In this way the maze acts a metaphor for Dave’s frustrated ambitions and stunted adult development, and only by figuring out how to push through it will he ever be free.

Funny, charming and utterly compelling, Dave Made a Maze is a lo-fi piece of inventive genius proving that with enough imagination and ingenuity even the smallest of budgets can be transformed into something special.

DAVE MADE A MAZE / CERT: TBA / DIRECTOR: BILL WATTERSON / SCREENPLAY: BILL WATTERSON, STEVEN SEARS / STARRING: NICK THUNE, MEERA ROHIT KUMBHANI, ADAM BUSCH, JAMES URBANIAK / RELEASE DATE: TBA