Review: New horror feature ‘Abject’ throws everything at the wall. Does anything stick?

David R. Williams Newest Horror Feature Film 

ABJECT

A year after the death of their only child, a couple journey to an isolated retreat to try and work through their grief and save their disintegrating relationship. There however the Wife experiences strange visions and horrific dreams. The Husband sinks deeper into an alcoholic daze. Violence erupts, But death is only the beginning of their torment.


The film begins with the definitions of the words Psychotic, Psychosis, and Abject. What serves as both a jarring opening and inevitable title card is striking. After that, ABJECT is a painfully slow descent akin to watching bad theater. Performances feel forced. Close-ups of Joe Gallagher washing knives are overkill. Did they use an entire set of knives making dinner? Certainly not. Juxtapose that with Helena Simon in a red-lit bathroom hearing voices, losing her shit, and it all feels nonsensical, disjointed, and inconsistent in the end. Dreamlike sexual scenarios had me scratching my head. The tropes are unnecessary. Listen, props to Simon for going all in as the sheer absurdity ramps up. Unfortunately, it all lands as rather silly.

Helena Simon

Gallagher‘s character is described as an alcoholic, yet there is no consistent sign of this behavior other than offering his wife a drink, which she twice refuses. His character is a complete asshole. Most of his interactions with his wife feel unjustified. After an intense, albeit over-the-top, confrontation in the third act, there is an incredibly accosting moment. Let that serve as a trigger warning for viewers.

Here’s what works best in ABJECT. I could not have exclaimed WTF more times while shaking my head as I sat through the film. Those are the moments you count on and make you a genre fan. An unexpected twist in the form of a two-and-a-half-minute monologue blows everything sky high. The final reveal is undoubtedly intriguing. Unfortunately, the rest of the film’s shenanigans don’t add up. All said and done, as a feature film, it is a letdown. But, if you took a scalpal to the script, you’d have one genuinely slick short.

ABJECT is now available to rent NOW on Amazon Prime, VUDU, Flixfling, and Blu-Ray 

 

Release Date: July 28, 2002

Run Time: 1Hr 15 MIN

Produced by

David R. Williams for Razor Wire Alchemy

Directed by David R. Williams

Starring Helena Simon, Joe Gallagher, Andy Rich, Clementine Jane Simpson

Written by David R. Williams, Constanza Bongiorni, Music by Frederic Mauerhofer, Stephen Rosenthal, Special makeup effects by Roy Knyrim/SOTA FX


 

About Liz Whittemore

Liz grew up in northern Connecticut and was memorizing movie dialogue from Shirley Temple to A Nightmare on Elm Street at a very early age. She will watch just about any film all the way through (no matter how bad) just to prove a point. A loyal New Englander, a lover of Hollywood, and true inhabitant of The Big Apple.

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