Filmmakers these
days have a need to creatively adapt their screenplay ideas in a way that
requires less money to film, and a solitary remote location is one way of
accomplishing this. It should then come as little surprise that so many
first-time filmmakers choose the horror genre, as writer/director Nils Timm has
done for his feature-film debut. Though this doesn’t feel like a feature as
much as a feature-length demo reel. Derivative to the point of dullness, Echoes simply feels like a calling card
for investors to see that Timm can complete a feature film. At the same time,
he simultaneously proved an inability to entertain or engage the audience
amidst all of the technical proficiency.
Kate French
stars as the film’s incredibly dull protagonist, and despite her best efforts
to commit to the role, she feels horribly miscast as another transparent
marketing ploy from Timm. French started as a model. Her parents were both
models. Something about her perfect looks that the camera takes advantage of
in-between scenes of terror and dread just seems contrived. Waking up in bed,
French still looks like she has been made up for a modeling shoot, and this
makes her supposed suffering in the film far more difficult to believe or be
sympathetic towards. I’m not saying that horror films like this should only
hire unattractive actresses, but they need to appear down-to-earth enough for
them to be relatable.
Paired with the far-too-commercial
looks in the endless scenes of solitude, Anna (French) writes for a successful
blog and the film begins with a scene of the aspiring writer scrolling through
her own site with an expression of pleasure and self-pride. We soon find out
that she is in the process of writing her first screenplay, and after less than
ten minutes of the film I found myself hoping for a Pyscho-type twist that would kill off this protagonist for a more
compelling one. Instead, Anna retreats to the desert vacation home of her
manager/lover, while simultaneously suffering from sleep paralysis.
There isn’t much I can say about the
rest of the film; it is so predictably contrived that anyone who has ever seen
a ghost story prior to this film will know the cause of the haunting before
film’s midway point. It was so obvious that I actually waited for the answer to
be something else, convinced that no filmmaker would be that lazy. Not to
mention the fact that this feature still has the amount of material needed for
a short film, stretched out to the point that it begins to feel like Echoes is even copying itself a little
bit.
What can be taken from viewing this
film? Timm can make a feature, but it will just feel like a bloated short film.
French makes a convincing actress, but attractive has never been so dull to
watch. Ghost stories all end with spirits trying to avenge their own death. The
Blu-ray only serves to highlight the demo-reel quality of the images. There are
no extras to make this upgrade worthwhile, nor is there enough excitement in
the narrative to warrant needing a high definition presentation.
Entertainment Value:
2/10
Quality of
Filmmaking: 3/10
Historical
Significance: 0/10
Special Features: 0/10
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