Horror In Short: Enter the Dark
Enter the Dark
Dir: Todd Miro
Review by Marc Patterson
What do you get when you put a couple of guys in a haunted suburban house full of demonic beings, possessed children’s toys, and a couple of handheld cameras? Well, if you’re Todd Miro you get Enter the Dark, a 17 minute short film that takes on the Cinema Verité genre of haunted house horror. The film presents the viewer with a simple – yet effective – set up. A couple of buddies are out to explore some unexplained paranormal happenings in said suburban home. Neither are “ghost hunters” of any sort. One guy is the actual homeowner. His wife and kids have moved out. They can’t take living there any more. His buddy seems to be along for moral support, but he’s pretty skeptical if anything, and more interested in drinking some brews. Not that I blame him. As the story quickly unfolds skepticism rapidly turns to scared shitless belief as all sorts of wild things start happening.
I have to say, this is a tough one to criticize. On one hand, Enter the Dark works on all levels. It’s technically a very solid short. The acting is up to par; in fact, better than in most no budget shorts. It’s got a great concept and is executed proficiently. There were even a couple of points in which I felt myself reflexively flinch. The biggest challenge facing this film? Two inevitable words: Paranormal Activity. Had Enter the Dark come out prior to PA then this would have been hailed as one of the most highly original horror shorts of the year. No kidding. No hyperbole. It’s that solid. But since it didn’t come out prior, the comparison can’t be shaken. I have a sneaking suspicion audiences are going to be pretty split on this one.
But get beyond Paranormal Activity and what you have is a fun little fright flick that effectively showcases Miro’s filmmaking and editing abilities. (Little trivia? Miro served as editor and producer of Elisabeth Fies much celebrated indie flick – The Commune, a rather modern take on such pagan based horrors such as The Wicker Man.) Given that he’s working on zero budget with only some basic cameras (a Canon 7D and a handheld Sony HD infra-red camcorder), this shows how much you can pull off using minimal equipment. I liked that the film featured two guy buddies as opposed to bringing in the female element. Nothing against the ladies, but there is a predominance of shrieking screaming ladies in this style of filmmaking. Blair Witch Project, Death of a Ghost Hunter, Evil Things, and most recently Paranormal Activity. (And trust me I could go on.) So it’s nice to see a couple of macho guys shitting bricks for once. But before they do there’s going to be plenty of goofing off, making lewd remarks and the like.
Enter the Dark is certainly worthy of viewing. In order to do so you’ll need to be an attendee of a variety of horror conventions as right now it’s not readily available. However, of special note, timely to this review, Enter the Dark has been selected to premiere at the Chicago Horror Film Festival Sunday, September 26th. If you’re in Chicago, or planning to attend, make sure to stick around through closing night to see this one.
Trailer:
Enter The Dark Trailer from Todd Miro on Vimeo.
