Hi everyone!
Welcome back for another Indie Wednesday. I thought that I would receive a flood of requests for film reviews from low-budget and independent distributors after starting this segment. Granted, we’re only a few weeks into the year, but I know whenever the requests stop flooding in that Amazon Prime has my back for finding low budget films out there, as part of their Prime Video Direct agreement. You can peruse literally thousands of films, all looking for their audience. And with today’s low-budget adaptation of an H.P. Lovecraft story, I am definitely a part of the audience for today’s film.
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Here we go!
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Today’s movie is THE DARK SLEEP (2012), the cosmic horror film written and directed by Brett Piper, based in part on the short story “Dreams in the Witch House” by H.P. Lovecraft. After a particularly bad divorce, writer Nancy Peterson (Ashley Galloway) comes to a financial arrangement with her ex-husband Pete (Steve Diasparra). Nancy forgoes alimony in exchange for a house with a strange stipulation in the deed, which requires a strange artwork in the basement from being painted over, which also contains a gateway to a strange, maddening dream realm.
No spoilers.
With the rising success of COLOR OUT OF SPACE, and its spiritual ancestor MANDY, Hollywood is finally turning their attention to the immense work of H.P. Lovecraft. There are many reasons for this, but here are two very big ones. First, Lovecraft’s works are nearly all in the public domain now, despite some varied legal challenges, which means literally anyone can adapt the works for other media, or even print the original stories. Today’s film is a testament to that ability. And second, we’re finally getting to a point where the special effects on the screen are catching up with the special effects in Lovecraft’s mind. Today’s film is NOT a testament to that aspect, but it definitely swings for the fences.
It’s also an adaptation of “Dreams in the Witch House”, which is a short story that bridges two distinct phases in Lovecraft’s fiction. First, it is a story firmly entrenched in the popular Cthulhu Mythos, really during the golden age of his work, playing with his bizarre melding of technology, fantasy, cosmic, and gothic horror. But second, it also hearkens back to his earlier short story work, as part of his so-called Dream Cycle works, heavily influenced by Edward Plunkett, known in the literary world as Lord Dunsany. He is one of the forgotten proto-fantasy writers, who wrote these elaborate dream stories that Lovecraft first mimicked, and then reconsidered through the darker lens of cosmic horror. And today’s film manages that... pretty well.
Writer/director Brett Piper has been an unstoppable force of nature within the low-budget science-fiction world, having written and directed productions all the way back to 1982, when special effects were mostly stop-motion and practically-based. If there’s anything I admire as much as tackling this particular Lovecraft story, it’s the inclusion of the old stop-motion models in many of the dream sequences, blended roughly with more advanced green screen techniques. Compared to the multi-million dollars special effects companies of today, the effects in THE DARK SLEEP would be considered barely passable, but as I said in my review for 1984’s DUNE (episode #704), older science fiction fans are willing to forgive a lot, and Brett Piper has made a modest living because of that, despite the criminally low budgets. And if that’s a deal breaker for you, then steer very clear of his entire filmography.
For the rest of us, especially fans of low-budget cinema, there’s nothing more exhilarating to watch than a writer/director swing for the stars. Granted, it does create a lot of opportunity for ridicule, as seen in more than one of his films getting lampooned by Mystery Science Theater 3000 or RiffTrax. But it also nearly always provides a lesson on filmmaking within constraints, which is endlessly fascinating to me, especially as the major equipment hurdles towards filmmaking are rapidly disintegrating. It also makes me wonder what he could do with a few million, and a larger team, because honestly, I suspect it could go either way. Piper has a niche, and we all get to explore it.
The casting for THE DARK SLEEP is pretty great. Ashley Galloway, by design, has to carry nearly the entire film as Nancy Peterson, playing a particularly unlikeable character in a modern adaptation of Lovecraft. Lovecraft was not an inclusive author by any means, sometimes outright racist, so casting a woman in the role, and including a lot of perspective from women is a welcome shift. However, as with many of Lovecraft’s stories, some elements don’t play as well when taken out of the turn of the century context, like inserting today’s complicated legalese that feels more Kafka than Lovecraft, or attempting to have a Miskatonic University character like Walter Gilman (Ken Van Sant). We don’t get a lot of growth in Nancy’s character, but we do get a consistent performance from Galloway, and that smooths over plenty of the rougher edges. I’m not going to say this is a great film, but it is fun to watch and admirable in its attempt, and Lovecraft fans are going to enjoy it.
So are fans of the stock sounds included with Garageband and Final Cut Pro. Perhaps the most hilarious part of watching this film was when I started hearing the same stock sounds I use for this podcast. So, if you’re wondering why I’ve been manipulating the background sound, it’s because each of these were used in the film. And for a Lovecraft fan, who starts hearing very familiar sounds late at night, wondering if he’s going mad, well, Mr. Piper, to you I say, “Well played, sir. Well played.” Piper may not have a wide audience, but I am happy to count myself among it, warts and all. So, be ready for another Brett Piper production on this segment next quarter. Hell, maybe I can even get Piper on the phone.
THE DARK SLEEP is a low-budget, present day adaptation of one of H.P. Lovecraft’s later works, bridging the Cthulhu Mythos and the Dream Cycle in exciting ways. The low-budget is stretched the furthest it can be in the hands of Brett Piper, and the film is carried along the way by a strong performance from Ashley Galloway. Low-budget cinema fans, or Lovecraft fans, should definitely give this one a watch. Everyone else, just know the quality is radically lower than your average film, and enjoy it for what it is.
Rotten Tomatoes: NR
Metacritic: NR
One Movie Punch: 5.0/10
THE DARK SLEEP (2012) is not rated and is currently playing on Amazon Prime.
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