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[REVIEW] BHFF 2024: ‘Dead Mail’ Is DOA

Writer and directors Joe DeBoer and Kyle McConaghy kill off Jasper and then jump to his killer’s backstory. We see the murderer, Trent (John Fleck), meet fellow synthesizer enthusiast Josh (Sterling Macer Jr.) and form a partnership. Trent decides to invest in Josh’s new idea, which will change the synthesizer game. As they get closer, and as the audience begins to wonder if they might be heading towards a romance, Trent discovers Josh has landed a job that will take him away from him. This is when Trent decides he cannot let Josh go and things get bloody and weirder. This is also where Dead Mail reveals the origins of the bloody note that led to Jasper’s death. 

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When a blood-stained note makes its way to the local post office, a “dead letter’ expert stumbles on to a deadly mystery. This fascinating thread and the beloved character of Jasper (Tomas Boykin), the mailroom clerk with a gift for finding the story behind any piece of suspicious mail is intriguing. However, Dead Mail reveals that it opened halfway through the story, so this is more of a long entryway into the world. This is a shame because this would have been a more promising movie and less problematic than what we get.

Writer and directors Joe DeBoer and Kyle McConaghy kill off Jasper and then jump to his killer’s backstory. We see the murderer, Trent (John Fleck), meet fellow synthesizer enthusiast Josh (Sterling Macer Jr.) and form a partnership. Trent decides to invest in Josh’s new idea, which will change the synthesizer game. As they get closer, and as the audience begins to wonder if they might be heading towards a romance, Trent discovers Josh has landed a job that will take him away from him. This is when Trent decides he cannot let Josh go and things get bloody and weirder. This is also where Dead Mail reveals the origins of the bloody note that led to Jasper’s death. 

While Dead Mail is not my kind of humor, I appreciate the cast commitment to these bits. I also dug the retro 1980s vibes. The creative team handled the wigs, clothes, props, and locations beautifully with their budget. I knew exactly when this was taking place right from the opening frame. The aesthetic choices are one of the few things that worked in this movie’s favor. I also think Jasper was the most fascinating character, and I enjoyed what Boykin was doing in that role. So when he dies, the rest of the movie feels like it is missing a reason for existing. I loved having a Black male character with hints of a backstory who is the best dead letter expert in all the land. That sounds fun, and I would have gladly spent more time with him solving cases. Especially, because it would have helped us avoid what was to come with Trent and Josh.

It feels like the filmmakers did not think about the optics of having a white guy chain a Black guy up in a bathroom, leaving him to eat off of the floor. Nor did they think about the historical context of white people feeling ownership over Black people and our creations. So, all of this is sitting in the forefront but going unaddressed when Trent locks Josh up. This is probably why it was hard to chuckle at some of the stabs at humor. It also makes it extremely troubling that no real justice is served for these transgressions. Trent does not go to jail but instead drives off to end himself on his own time. He also gets another cute moment where he plays a tape Josh made before their partnership took a turn. Dead Mail really stumbled into Black trauma and then refused to deal with it while never treating the white criminal like a criminal. This is messy and a wildly confusing route to take. He is written as a kooky character we are supposed to like and I do not understand. If he had suffered a single consequence then maybe I would feel slightly differently. 

In what seems like an attempt at a bandaid, Ann (Micki Jackson) solves the case of the letter and Jasper’s murder. I love seeing Black women win on film, but because we had Josh chained up in a bathroom, I was worried about what would happen to her as I watched her put herself in so much danger. However, Dead Mail is not interested in a fight or punishing Trent. So, when he sees that she has figured it out, he just drives away, leaving us unsatisfied. Any hope that all these questionable choices were building to something deflates without giving the audience a moment of catharsis. 

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What makes it even more uncomfortable is I don’t think the filmmakers are aware of these issues. They seemingly set out to create a dead letter investigator and maybe show that they are heavily influenced by the work of the Coen brothers. So, I am very curious how Joe DeBoer and Kyle McConaghy will respond as Dead Mail exits festivals and becomes more accessible to the public. Hopefully, the incoming discourse will help them make different choices in their future projects. While I will not be revisiting this movie, I would be curious to see how they follow it up if they avoid some of these glaring issues. 

Dead Mail played at Brooklyn Horror Film Festival on October 17th, 2024.

Sharai is a writer, horror podcaster, freelancer, and recovering theatre kid. She is one-half of the podcast of Nightmare On Fierce Street, one-third of Blerdy Massacre, and co-hosts various other horror podcasts. She has bylines at Dread Central, Fangoria, and Horror Movie Blog. She spends way too much time with her TV while failing to escape the Midwest. You can find her most days on Instagram and Twitter. However, if you do find her, she will try to make you watch some scary stuff.

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[REVIEW] ‘The Dead Thing’ Takes Ghosting To A Whole New Level

The Dead Thing follows Alex (Blu Hunt), a young woman who works late hours, lives by the rays of a sunlamp, and is looking for the one connection that will make life seem less cyclical. When Alex meets Kyle (Ben Smith-Peterson), it seems like things will finally be going in her favor. But all that glitters is not gold. As quickly as he came, he vanished. Hurt, confused, and pissed, Alex tries to get to the bottom of why Kyle disappeared from her life. Some stones are meant to be left unturned.

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Elric Kane has been a prominent voice in the film and horror space for a long time. One of my fondest memories of Kane is his longtime hosting gig on the Shock Waves Podcast. The amount of film knowledge and obscure films I learned about from him and Dr. Rebekah McKendry singlehandedly fueled my interest in collecting physical media. Hearing how passionate and intense they were with their love of the genre is also what started me down the path of writing. While Dr. McKendry has previously dipped her toes in the feature filmmaking game, it’s now time for Elric Kane to do so.

Cut to: The Dead Thing.

The Dead Thing follows Alex (Blu Hunt), a young woman who works late hours, lives by the rays of a sunlamp, and is looking for the one connection that will make life seem less cyclical. When Alex meets Kyle (Ben Smith-Peterson), it seems like things will finally be going in her favor. But all that glitters is not gold. As quickly as he came, he vanished. Hurt, confused, and pissed, Alex tries to get to the bottom of why Kyle disappeared from her life. Some stones are meant to be left unturned.

Writer/director Elric Kane’s (and co-writer Webb Wilcoxen) singular debut feature film is a superbly crafted supernatural spectacle. The Dead Thing starts slow and deliberate; rather than rushing into an overwritten plot with underwritten characters, Kane and Wilcoxen allow the audience to sit with Alex in her neverending love life. One aspect of Alex that I, and hopefully many will, appreciate is how Alex is written. Rarely does Alex feel written from the perspective of the male gaze. Her life may not be going in the exact direction she wants, but the film never makes it out to be a her problem. At no point do they try and make Alex out to be a floozy or condemn her for the life she’s living, instead they make those who live the same kind of lifestyle feel seen. The film asks the audience if they ever feel like there’s no escape; too many of us can relate to that.

It doesn’t matter how a character is written if the acting doesn’t deliver, and Blu Hunt delivers. Set aside the fact that she has one of the most badass names I’ve ever heard, Hunt provides an astounding lead performance. Whether she’s walking alone down a Los Angeles street, or playing off of her longtime friend Cara (Katherine Hughes), coworker Chris (John Karna), or the mysterious[ly handsome] Kyle, Hunt gives it her all. It helps that Ben Smith-Peterson and the supporting cast all give overwhelmingly brilliant performances.

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Supernatural stories aren’t usually my go-to. They can be too overwritten, too style over substance, too “elevated”, or just plain boring. The Dead Thing quickly finds its footing and lets the audience accept it or not. Kane and cinematographer Ioana Vasile (who was a still photographer for Pontypool!!!) wonderfully capture the sometimes-solitary, sometimes-overstimulating beautiful hellscape that is Los Angeles. It should also be noted that one of my favorite actors in the world, Matt Mercer is a producer on this film.

The Dead Thing hits the perfect blend of claustrophobic loneliness and endless yearning. Just like Dr. Rebekah McKendry, it’s clear that Elric Kane doesn’t just talk the talk, he walks the walk. For his debut feature film, The Dead Thing doesn’t need resuscitation. I’d say run, don’t walk, to check this one out, but if you do…look left and right before crossing the street.

The Dead Thing hits Shudder on Friday, February 14! Watch it with your partner if you can, or watch it alone with a tub of ice cream and an overflowing glass of wine. I won’t judge.

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[REVIEW] ‘Bride of Chucky’ Takes The Franchise In A New Direction

Bride of Chucky follows two groups of people who inevitably meet up for a final climactic finale. Tiffany Valentine (Jennifer Tilly) procures Chucky’s (Brad Dourif) body following the events of Child’s Play 3. Her goal is to perform a voodoo ritual to put his soul back into a human’s body. Through a questionable series of events, Chucky kills Tiffany and puts her soul into the body of a doll. The side story follows Jade Kincaid (Katherine Heigl) and Jesse Miller (Nick Stabile) who elope, with a thousand dollars, from Jade’s overbearing police chief uncle Warren (John Ritter). After Chucky kills Warren, Jade and Jesse are fingered for the murder. That’s when hijinks ensue.

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The Child’s Play franchise is all over the place. What started as a [fairly] serious slasher series surrounding a killer doll would morph into a Nightmare on Elm Street-like horror comedy before self-correcting to find a solid middle ground. I’ll be the first to admit that I have never really cared much for this franchise. Child’s Play frightened me when I was a kid, and it wouldn’t be until my college years that I decided to watch Bride and Seed–this altered my overall opinion of what the franchise stood for. Watching Child’s Play 2 and 3 back in college left me wondering how a franchise as culturally impactful as this one fluctuated in style and substance.

Bride of Chucky follows two groups of people who inevitably meet up for a final climactic finale. Tiffany Valentine (Jennifer Tilly) procures Chucky’s (Brad Dourif) body following the events of Child’s Play 3. Her goal is to perform a voodoo ritual to put his soul back into a human’s body. Through a questionable series of events, Chucky kills Tiffany and puts her soul into the body of a doll. The side story follows Jade Kincaid (Katherine Heigl) and Jesse Miller (Nick Stabile) who elope, with a thousand dollars, from Jade’s overbearing police chief uncle Warren (John Ritter). After Chucky kills Warren, Jade and Jesse are fingered for the murder. That’s when hijinks ensue.

Before the comments start, let’s return to the opening comment regarding Child’s Play turning into a horror comedy. Chucky was always one for quips. Like Freddy Krueger, Chucky would hit a one-liner shortly before or after his kill. These jokes worked to help cut through Chucky’s horror. It gave some momentary relief from the kills. Bride of Chucky is just one long gag, and for me, it’s frustrating. Like Nightmare, Bride of Chucky has lost the plot. Every scene seems to exist to facilitate a setup for the next bit or one-liner, rather than having moments of comedy flow naturally. The doll sex scene and swinger couple bits are just poorly thought-out filler.

I know this is going to anger some of you, but Bride of Chucky is a seriously awful movie.

There are a few moments that I do truly enjoy and work well in the overall Child’s Play universe. Tiffany kills the officer she buys Chucky’s body from with a nail file and then uses it to file her nails. The moment Tiffany stabs Chucky in the back at the cemetery is a great character moment, but it makes everything that led up to it pointless. With the exception of a few moments here and there, Bride of Chucky ends up being a chore to watch rather than entertainment. For a genre that has always been political, gay representation has been lacking for quite some time. The character of David Collins (Gordon Michael Woolvett) is a welcome addition to the story, but he feels underutilized in the grand scheme of it all.

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While I may not care for the franchise much, I’ve done some research on it over the years. Bride of Chucky features many recycled bits from other Child’s Play scripts and you can really feel it. The kills are few and far between and feel overly forced. Child’s Play 4 was initially put on hold after the abysmal box office of Child’s Play 3 and maybe writer/director Don Mancini should have taken another year or so to really flesh out the canon of Chucky. Now, don’t get me wrong, I like the idea of Tiffany becoming a doll and becoming pregnant with Chucky’s baby. But I don’t think the ends justify the means.

Cult and Curse of Chucky, thankfully, take the series back to a more grounded and to-the-roots nature of what Child’s Play was, and I’m glad it took nearly a decade after Seed for it to come to fruition. Mancini is an excellent voice in horror, but time and constraints are necessary for his vision to be fully realized. Those who are Child’s Play die-hards will probably disagree with everything I’ve said, and that’s okay. As a casual Chucky fan, Bride of Chucky feels nothing more than a nu-metal, Hot Topic, try-hard entry into the franchise. The kills look solid, and Dourif gives an incredible vocal performance (as always) but there’s little to no substance to Bride of Chucky.

No wonder half of all marriages end in divorce.

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