Review: Subject 2023 a film by Tristan Barr on @ScreamboxTV
Tonight I had the honor to review a new release from an Indie Director from Australia you may have heard of: Tristan Barr. IMDB shares that Tristan was the writer/director behind Australia’s first full-length feature film in one single take, “Watch the Sunset”. With writer, director, producer and acting credits going back to 2012, Tristan gifts us with his minimalist take on found footage horror with his uniquely human perspective dissecting the frailty of the human condition.
I use minimalist here and not low-budget because the attention to detail, which is the art of film making, is readily apparent. The lighting, camera work, set design, makeup, continuity, and old school video feel make this a feast for the eyes. The actors were up to the challenge and oh boy, does Cecelia Low with her silky vibrato sell it. Gabby Seow was everyone’s perfect 17 year old daughter who is in a no-win situation. And Little Scarlet Walker as Layla both melts your heart and crushes your soul. Then there is our protagonist Willem played by Stephen Phillips who gives off a decidedly authentic Roy Scheider vibe to me. Initially a simple guy you wouldn’t think twice about having a drink with at the bar, only to find out his inner demons are real and all consuming.
This movie uses little in the way of blood to tell a very powerful story….. A very human horror story. Murder isn’t the focus in this, though a couple of blokes have an early demise. It is horror of the most debilitating kind. It rips open our own vulnerabilities as frail humans facing life, igniting the fears of failing those we love most.
From the beginning we know Willem has done some bad things but he seems to be given a chance as a subject in an experiment — sort of a get out of jail free card. Early on in observation, our male protagonist is quickly outed as a failed father using a creative interplay of old family videos as either memories, dreams, or films he is forced to watch in his solitary confinement. You slowly see hints at the other challenges ravaging this family and begin to slowly understand Willem’s role in the disintegration of his family, not necessarily of his own choosing.
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As we witness Willem slowly lose his mind….. along the way we learn more about the death of his family. In a cell next to him he sees a humanoid form that has clearly been there a long time. Is it another subject? Or is it something more sinister.
“Yikes, this is not a happy movie”, I exclaimed about halfway through!
Moody. Dramatic. Tense. Sad. Confusing. These guys really wrote a hell of a narrative.
When Willem screams, “My existence is a stain on the rest of existence.” I felt my own insecurities and vulnerabilities well up. Who among us has not felt failure to that degree? I have and it’s the worst kind of horror for me.
When credits rolled (hang around for a closing scene) I jotted down on my notepad, “God damn you Tristan, that movie fucked me up. Brilliant job!!”
On @ScreamboxTV right now. Subscribe and watch. It’s very much worth it.
