Directed By Stuart Ortiz

Starring – Peter Zizzo, Terri Apple, Andy Laurer

The Plot – Detectives are thrust into a chilling hunt for “Mr. Shiny”, a sadistic serial killer from the past whose return marks the beginning of a new wave of grotesque, otherworldly crimes tied to a dark cosmic force.

Rated R for disturbing/grisly violent content and adult language

STRANGE HARVEST | Official Trailer | In Theaters August 8

POSITIVES

In the same vein as 2001’s “The Poughkeepsie Tapes”, as well as the legion of Netflix true crime documentaries before it that the movie inspires, “Strange Harvest” is a mockumentary style engagement that effectively and unnervingly taps into the serial killer obsession that is currently all of the craze with at-home audiences, with its distinct brand of seamless production values that naturally emulate what is a fictionalized account of a serial killer’s terrifying road of devastation. Between eye witness testimonies involving unfamiliar actors depositing their chilling accounts of this sixteen year mystery, dramatizations coming as close to the detailed events as possible, and grainy textured news briefings mastering a 90’s feel in accommodating visuals, the film faithfully depicts all of the universal aspects of a story being told from the first person perspective, all the while unloading an evolving mystery towards articulating the madman that is its serial killer to feeling as coldly unforgiving and ruthless as you’ve ever seen in one of these movies. Part of what separates Mr. Shiny from the bunch is not only his lack of consistency in the choice of victims that conveys that no man, woman, child, or even animal is safe, but most especially the surmising lore within the developing narrative that takes this film down some supernatural alleyways that I truly wasn’t expecting, which keeps the film freshly maintained in originality and speculation far past the point of the movie shockingly revealing its killer’s identity around the film’s midway point. As to where this would normally be a critical detriment to a movie’s compelling factor, particularly one defined as an enveloping mystery driving the movie’s narrative above all else, the film illustrates the evolution of this killer that drives a maximized vulnerability towards his victims in the spontaneous methods of his many captures, and considering it constantly feels like the authorities and investigative team interviewed for the film are one step away from capturing this guy, it brandishes a cat-and-mouse game of suspense that continuously left me captivated throughout the movie’s 89-minute runtime, with very little in the way of individualized scenes that feel long-winded or detrimental to the consistency of the movie’s pacing. On top of this, the design and movements of this killer are highly fascinating, particularly in his creepy mask that all but obscures his facial identity, with the exception of those persistently callous eyes that occasionally burn a hole into the few cameras that we receive into the crime scenes, but also his assemblance of a varying means of torture that prove a high range of intelligence and patience for each of his carefully picked victims. Considering this is a story that expands sixteen years in the onslaught of a master manipulator who constantly evaded authorities, the basic catch and kill methods involving a knife and an unknowing victim simply wouldn’t peak the interests of an adoringly invested audience, so his expressive range and objectives expand and deviate within the Zodiac brand of letters that he sends to the deciphering authorities, with unnerving narration involving A.I audio deposits feeling like an effective level of vocal range for a killer lacking any semblance of empathy or relent towards the victims. If this isn’t enough, the movie’s minimized budget seems sparingly saved for the make-up designs and carnage candy gore of the many stomach-churning stakes that this killer unleashes on his opposition, particularly those surviving victims who now face a new level of Hell in learning to adapt to their new disfigurements. In going back to “The Poughkeepsie Tapes” for a moment, I never expected any film to even come close to the emotionally crippling circumstances of Cheryl in that movie, in which she not only loses a couple of limbs because of her captor, but also develops a trauma bond to him in ways that conveys an unforeseen level of tragedy to the stakes and circumstances of the case, yet a victim in this film named McSweiss comes as close as possible, with a newfound facial appearance involving burning and deep tissue scarring that is truly unlike anything that I have ever seen effectively conjured from practical make-up and prosthetics, featuring an unshakeable lasting image during interview depositions that will stay with my memory for as long as I live. Make no mistakes about it, this movie earns every inch of its sought-after R-rating, featuring some of the most gruesome gore that I can remember in recent memory with a mainstream release, and while Ortiz’ isn’t shy about delivering on the goods for a horror hound audience, its impact never feels oversaturated or self-indulgent in the ways it’s casually enacted and captured in the many crime scene photos and up-front interviews assembled for the presentation, allowing the film unfiltered access to your subconscious in ways that makes it truly unforgettable.

NEGATIVES

While “Strange Harvest” is easily on the superior side to mockumentary style engagements, especially over the last decade of uninspiring predecessors, it isn’t without errors in the exploits of its many ambitious choices that cripple its creativity, particularly its aforementioned drifting into supernatural territory within its killer’s many capabilities that I just didn’t find worked well within the confines of a story that worked the best and most accessible when it approached everything at a human means of vulnerability. Once the script begins to tap into Shiny’s interests pertaining to beastly creatures and Egyptian mythology, the storytelling starts to feel very contrived and creatively convoluted, all in the efforts to building an Earth-shattering climax that on its own has its own issues that I will dissect in just a second. For my money, the film articulated a far stronger intelligence and adaptability to Shiny when he wasn’t given inhuman ways to evade such a captor, and considering this late second and early third acts of the movie represents a stronger hold on the movie’s pacing, that is otherwise consistently smooth and maintained throughout the engagement, it’s an aspect that I wish was left on the cutting room floor of the movie’s finished product, instead of dominating much of the movie’s second half to feeling silly at times. As for that aforementioned ending that I previously hinted at, the film does build to an overwhelming crescendo of a climax during its last few scenes, but the resolution materializes abruptly and underwhelmingly in ways that didn’t quite payoff my expectations to this grand scale chess game taking place between Shiny and the F.B.I. If you’re paying attention to the details assembled within the expanding narrative into supernatural territory, you should be able to effectively piece together just what Shiny’s objective is during these final victims, even despite the dialogue during depositions outlining how oblivious these investigators are to what’s transpiring, but it falls flat at reaching such an impactful destination, and the film is wrapped up cleanly and conveniently as possible because of it, ultimately keeping it from surpassing “The Poughkeepsie Tapes” in lasting post-movie eerie influence, even with a tacked-on post-credit scene that seems to hint at the possibility of future sequels.

OVERALL
“Strange Harvest” effectively rides the waves of true crime documentaries with a palpable level of anxiousness and ambiguity to Stuart Ortiz’ direction that recreates a realistic aspect to its mockumentary styled captivity. While conflicted by bouts with supernaturalism that obscures the human element to grotesquely grisly actions, the film is a grippingly gruesome murder mystery that gets under your skin in the most cerebral of methods, belonging next to the litany of Netflix True Crime documentaries that evokes paranoia in the idea of how little we truly know about those who walk among us.

My Grade: 7.5 or B-