Falling Stars, 2023.
Directed by Gabriel Bienczycki, Richard Karpala
Starring Shaun Duke Jr., Andrew Gabriel, Rene Leech, Greg Poppa
SYNOPSIS:
On the first night of harvest, three brothers set out for the desert to see a witch’s corpse.
This low-budget slice of American folk horror poetically captures the sheer dread of the unknowable amidst a dense pool of pitch-black night sky. Set in an alternate world where witches are real and fall from the sky like meteors, the story, directed by Gabriel Bienczycki and Richard Karpala and written by Karpala, takes the audience on a nightmarish journey through isolated rural life.
Three brothers (Shaun Duke Jr., Andrew Gabriel, Rene Leech) have to travel into the night to view a potentially extremely dangerous witch’s corpse buried in the desert. Led by their friend Rob (Greg Poppa), and warned that any desecration of the witch will unleash a curse, the group takes out their flashlights to inspect. Unfortunately for the group, some alcohol gets inadvertently splashed into the burial site, violating the witches’ rules and landing the boys in big trouble.
The whole feel of the film is neatly drawn, and thanks to an introductory text that sets out the world we’re in, where witches exist and embark on a harvesting season in Autumn, the audience feels part of the story. This is given extra weight by outside media reports and scenes in a classic late-night radio station, where the oldest brother Mike (Duke Jr.) calls in to try and get help and explain the impending peril.
Influences from classic American writers of weirdness from Shirley Jackson to H.P. Lovecraft shine down on this intriguing mystery. Space horror and desolate loneliness are induced by the overwhelming night sky, while an almost Lynchian surreal edge is brought out in the performance of the brothers’ mother (Dianne Worman).
After the boys learn that the only way to stop the curse that threatens all of them and everyone they know is to burn the witch’s corpse before sunrise, they are on a race against time. The stress, paranoia and fear are beautifully conveyed, and this is one case where the budget limitations serve the story well. There is no need for big studio effects when the acting and writing is so solid and so committed to the central idea as this, and the indistinct shadows of the night make a dreamy parallel with the edges of consciousness.
The bluesy soundtrack also conjures up wistful dreams of a doomed Americana which works well with the story. The story is allowed to flow without protected explanations of how or why. The film rings out like a pained song of bewilderment, where humanity is a small part of the process that is working continually beyond the night sky.
The central performances of the three brothers are all accomplished, and you really get the feeling that the characters care for each other and what is happening. They act as a microcosm of humans in the dark; scared, hurt and confused, but willing to do anything to survive.
Flickering Myth Rating – Film: ★ ★ ★ ★ / Movie: ★ ★ ★ ★
Robert W Monk
