This is a level of independent cinema that gives me hope of what anyone can make with a little money and a camera similar to feelings I had when I saw PRIMER, CLERKS, or THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT. It really shows how scared and tense you can make an audience feel simply by turning off the lights in the right way. This film has a creepy atmosphere that absorbs you. This is done so well due to the sound design, music, and acting of MacLeod Andrews. I also keep coming back to how simple the film is — and that is a great compliment. There is so much showing the audience how stuff works (wether its the nail gun or the acid) and how Wyatt sees the world that there is so much payoff in the tension of later scenes. It is a great exploration of madness and paranoia and has you go back and forth between asking yourself if this all in Wyatt’s head or is it actually happening. The ending is also great in terms of tension and catharsis. All of that being said, there is a lot of clunkiness around the film. This mainly comes from how far Christian goes at the end to help Wyatt confront his psychosis. It goes from making sense to being borderline stupid how long he goes with trusting him, which I guess is also the point. There is also too much going on with Christian from his working out and affirmations, to awkwardness around Mara, to getting fired (which doesn’t make any sense in the way it happens), to his thrown away mentioned comment about a suicide attempt, it is hard to see what they were trying to accomplish with his character.
