Instant Review: In Search of Lovecraft
In Search Of Lovecraft (2009)
Studio: Hohlographic Films
Release Date: March 3, 2009
Directed By: David J. Hohl
Cast: Renee Sweet, Tytus Bergstrom, Denise Amrikhas & Saqib Mausoof.
Review By: Annie Riordan
You’d think I’d know better by now. A three star rating on Netflix and the name “Lovecraft” in the title does not necessarily guarantee a good movie. But I’m a sucker for all things Lovecraft and never once stopped to consider that the high ratings may have been generated by the filmmakers themselves, their family and friends and anyone else who would accept a walk-on role and a keg in return.
Rebecca Marsh is our horse-faced heroine, a frustrated reporter stuck with filler stories and fluff pieces who is sadly certain that her career will never take off. When she’s given the task of digging up information on H.P. Lovecraft for an upcoming Halloween story, she balks once again, believing this to be yet another shit assignment. With her camera man Mike and dipshitty teenage intern/slutster Amber (who seems to own no other clothes other than her Catholic school girl uniform) in tow, Rebecca reluctantly starts following the leads provided by some stereotypically shady characters into the underworld cult of the Old Ones, only to discover – too late! – that the Mythos is real, and Nyarlathotep, aka The Crawling Chaos, aka The Black God (but not in the African American sense of the word “black”) is seeking a gateway into our world through a human portal. Will Rebecca serve as the unwilling doorway? Well, since her last name is Marsh? Yeah, probably. Will you care? No, not at all.
And that’s all the synopsis that this movie is getting. Long story short: it’s terrible. The story doesn’t make a whole lot of sense and seems to want to be the Lovecraftian version of House of the Devil. However, it’s not based on any one tale by Lovecraft, but rather confusingly throws in elements from several including The Shadow Over Innsmouth, The Whisperer In Darkness and – most obviously – Nyarlathotep. The sets are bare. The effects are nonexistent. The female Wilhelm Scream gets more screen time than the actual cast. And, last but not least, the acting is absolutely atrocious with the sole exception of Tytus Bergstrom as Mike, whose intense presence and thousand yard stare is worthy of note and much better than this flick deserves. Considering the wooden performances of the rest of the cast, this film might have faired better as a spoof. Initially I believed that’s where it was headed, but if Spoofville was indeed its true destination, it seems to have made the proverbial wrong turn at Albuquerque and forgot to pick up Humor along the way.
If Howie were still alive, I think he’d sue the shit out of the filmmakers and possibly use the winnings to hire a hitman and have everyone involved in this travesty solidly whacked right the hell into the outer void of space and time. Word up, Hohl: try searching for Lovecraft a little harder, cuz you ain’t found him yet.
