THE THING ON THE DOORSTEP

THE THING ON THE DOORSTEP

"It is true that I have just sent six bullets through the head of my best friend" states Dan's (David Bunce) voiceover as we witness him exiting a remote cabin in the dead of night, seconds after having heard said shots ring out. "And yet" he continues, "I hope to show by this statement that I am NOT his murderer".

Dan then sits at his typewriter and sets about delivering that statement. His narration continues initially, as we're propelled back in time to the beginning of his tale. Here, we see his peaceful afternoon interrupted one day when his old pal Edward (Rob Dalton) turns up claiming to be in need of $1,000.00 to pay off someone who's blackmailing him. Dan asks few questions and hands Edward a cheque.

Shortly afterwards, Dan hooks up with Edward at an evening meeting for the Miskatonic University intelligentsia: Dan being an architect, his best buddy famous for writing a best-selling book on the occult when he was just 17, they're well in with such a group. It's here that Dan discovers Edward has fallen for the group's newest recruit, the mysterious Asenath (Mary Jane Hansen). She's a descendent of the Innsmouth family, and as such she's subject to rumours in their small town of Arkham of being similarly involved in the black arts.

Indeed, as Dan grows increasingly concerned with Edward's whirlwind romance with Asenath, his own pregnant wife Marion (Susan Cicarelli-Caputo) voices serious reservations - and Edward's own ailing father (Bill Fortune) calls his son's new love interest a "necromancer", going so far as to accuse her of "worshipping Satan". None of which stops Edward from buying a house - the most dilapidated, fly-infested house in town - with Asenath and then rushing off to tour Europe with her.

When he returns, Edward pays a visit to Dan and Marion ... and the changes in his personality are starting to show. Distant, arrogant, occasionally aggressive, prone to doing out-of-characters things...

In the meantime, Dan starts suffering from recurring dreams featuring Asenath's visage while Marion - a therapist by day - grows more and more disdainful of his overly protective relationship with Edward. So much so that she decides to pay Asenath a visit behind her husband's back.

The plot thickens when Edward and Asenath's relationship takes an unexpected turn - and Edward continues to be haunted by her presence. Dan needs to know: has his friend gone barmy, or his estranged lover really something altogether more sinister?

A low budget affair, THE THING ON THE DOORSTEP is nevertheless an ambitious adaptation of HP Lovecraft's classic short story of the same name. It's set in modern times, but retains a healthy old-fashioned vibe throughout. Virtually the entire film has been colour-coded to look darker than normal, with many scenes offering dull yellow or green hues to achieve a highly stylised approach.

Producer Will Severin also handles sound design, the musical duties. The score is a satisfying blend of creepy piano tinkering and slow orchestral build-ups. It fits snugly with the considered pace, nuanced performances and faithful screenplay from Hansen (she was also in charge of make-up and hair on the shoot).

Severin and Hansen aren't the only ones in this production to take on more than one role (they're also both listed as being "foley artists"): director Tom Gliserman is also credited as being the film's editor, cinematographer and even digital effects artist.

Oh yes, speaking of which, that's one aspect in which the film is lacking. The CGI (infrequent to be fair) is lousy. It cheapens the film, unfortunately, and is at loggerheads with the very deliberate old-school spook show otherwise being strived for.

Although I haven't seen either of them, the tale has also been made into two other films in recent years. One boasting the same title, in 2003, and a second in 2005 called STRANGE AEONS: THE THING ON THE DOORSTEP. Curiously, the Internet Movie Database has them down as both being directed by Eric Morgret.

Both of the above appear to be well thought of. However, I'd be willing to wager that Gliserman's film could well earn itself a solid reputation too. If it gets seen. It stays true in large to its source material, and - going back to my initial comment - is ambitious enough in scope to overcome any of the above minor misgivings. The performances are reliable throughout, the desire to invest in characters' relationships rather than simply whip their tops off and have them slaughtered is refreshing, and Hansen's screenplay is literate enough to elevate this above its meagre budget.

MVD Visual's DVD is region-free and presents the film uncut, in its original 16x9 widescreen ratio. Although the production was obviously a low budget affair, the picture quality is mostly very good. Pronounced detail in close-up scenes, along with good renditions of contrasting blacks and greys serve the presentation well. A mixture of almost sepia colour correction and digital photography do result in wider shots exhibiting a soft-focus effect, but that's no disc defect.

English 2.0 audio is fair throughout. There are no issues to be had with its playback; likewise, it didn't jump out at me as being particularly impressive either.

The disc opens to a static main menu page. An animated scene selection menu allows access to the film via 12 chapters.

A sole extra feature is offered: the film's original trailer. This clocks in at just under 2 minutes in length and appears to be making a conscious effort to not give too much away.

THE THING ON THE DOORSTEP is a very faithful, intelligent translation to the screen for Lovecraft's short story. Some may argue the twist is predictable, but Hansen's beefing-out of the relationships enjoyed between the protagonists lends events unexpected gravitas.

It's a shame we only get a trailer as an extra, as I imagine there are a few interesting stories to be told about the film's production. Still, this one comes recommended regardless.

Review by Stuart Willis


 
Released by Leomark Studios
Region 0
Not Rated
Extras :
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