'Silent Hill: Revelation' Review

"Silent Hill: Revelation" is a continuation of the first "Silent Hill" movie, and unfortunately, it pales in comparison to its predecessor. The ending was good though, with a monster fight that would make most Silent Hill fanboys have a geek-gasm over.

The first Silent Hill movie had it's tense moments, some of which I found to be absolutely terrifying. That is also why I was excited to see the second movie. But, in the end, "Silent Hill: Revelation did nothing for me in terms of emotional involvement. It wasn't scary in the slightest. I felt nothing for the characters as they ran their way through the gauntlet of the weird crazy monsterville that was strangely overpopulated for a ghost town.

And I know that I wasn't too into it when my SO Shane Strange kept looking over to me and asking me if I was OK or, "What's Wrong?" I think I must've been sighing in disgust at just how terrible and forced the first half of the movie feels. The beginning was rough and hard to watch due to pure cheesiness of the lines and the rushed dialogue.

Like the first Silent Hill movie, "Silent Hill: Revelation" heavily relied on exposition to relay the backstory, during which a character narrates just what happened prior to the start of the movie in a flashback. In this instance, the events that Harry narrates could have been the actual beginning of the movie, with Rose delivering Sharon to him before being sucked back into Silent Hill. But nooo, we need to hear Sean Bean's dreamy voice for 10 minutes straight.

During one such exposition sequence we learn that Christopher Da Silva (Sean Bean) has changed his name to Harry Mason and is on the run from the police. His daughter Sharon, now Heather Mason, was returned to him by the ghost of his dead wife, Rose.

Heather believes that she lost her mother in a car accident, and doesn't remember anything that happened prior to her being brought back to her father. How convenient...

Heather has been having nightmares for years now. She writes them down in a notebook and when she leaves, her father rips out the pages and stores them in a wooden box that is carved with strange arcane symbols. Yep, that's not suspicious at all.

Now, it's Heather's 18th birthday and she is going to a new high school, again. While on the way to the bus stop, she starts seeing strange things on her way to the bus stop. Then a detective in a doofy crushed fedora hat, Douglas Cartland, shows up and asks her weird questions about her past.


Why is that stupid private investigator wearing a ridiculously floppy fedora that was too big for his head and practically covered his eyes?

He tells her point blank (yeah, so much for subtlety) that he was hired by a cult and that they are looking for her and know where she is.  Alarmed and probably creeped out by the guy, she runs to the bus stop and gets on.

At school she makes a speech telling the stupid kids to shut up after they pick on her about her old worn out clothes. Soon after, Heather begins to hallucinate and watches in horror as the school transforms into the nightmarish Otherworld. When the vision ends, she bumps into Vincent and leaves school early.

Heather calls her father to tell him that she was spotted by a detective and he agrees to meet her at the Happy Burger in the mall. While at the fast food emporium, she watches a girl's birthday party take place, when all of the balloons suddenly read "Happy Birthday Heather." The food that people are eating turns into bloody raw meat in one of the goofiest scenes in the whole movie. The Happy Burger scene in particular was just bad. Heather begins hallucinating that people at a birthday party are eating raw meat and getting blood all over their faces. And that, was stupid. Not scary, just contrived.

For the most part, Heather's hallucinations were well... kind of dumb. They really didn't fit the feel of Silent Hill at all. Like this guy, who I have dubbed Thumb-head, because his face reminds me of a thumb for some reason.

Speaking of contrived, all of the dialogue, in terms of words used and the writing style, was strangely anachronistic and out of place. People living in modern times do not use the terms "my love" when talking to each other, especially a married couple who's relationship is broken (ahem, Rose and Harry, I'm talking about you). It would have made sense for the cultists from Silent Hill to speak that way, seeing as how they are completely cut off from the world and living in an apocalyptic hell-hole, but not Harry, Heather or Rose.

The first part of the movie is very slow and uninteresting. It's not until Heather and Vincent are on their way to Silent Hill does the pace pick up. But even when she is in Silent Hill, there are sequences that just don't make a lot of sense, such as when Heather is walking through a hallway in the asylum on her search for Leonard and the inmates (real people, not monsters) all reach out to grab her.

Doesn't look like her path is impeded to me.

She says, "Someone help me," and just like when Rose utters those words in the first movie, Pyramid Head appears. But this time, he just pops into view, nothing heralds his arrival, and Heather slips into a convenient hiding hole while he chops off the inmate's arms. 

Heather then walks away down another hallway connected to her hiding spot, which makes no sense. Upon seeing how easily she escaped it's clear that she truly wasn't in danger at all. Sure, she was being groped at, but there weren't so many hands outstretched in the hallway to block her passage completely. And she really didn't need Pyramid Head to show up at all, as all she had to do was hop down into another passage and go on her merry way.

Unfortunately, the monsters that she runs into in Silent Hill are a bit on the ridiculous side.

The Missionary in particular reminds me of a Clive Barker Tortured Souls toy that my SO Shane Strange gave me for Christmas about a decade ago called Camille Noire.

And that's the weird thing. A lot of the monsters have a more sleek design that border the sadomasochistic feel of the Cenobites from "Hellraiser," as opposed to the strange weirdness and twisted, bloated monstrosities of "Silent Hill."

Here's the original Missionary from "Silent Hill 3"

One could argue that the reason why Leonard and the missionary were streamlined was to differentiate Claudia's monsters from Alessa's horrific creations, and I do sort of see that, but, at the same time, they just didn't do much for me in terms of being scary. But maybe that's just me. Maybe I'm jaded. Or quite possibly,  it could be that the only original monster in the movie that was interesting was the spider made out of mannequin parts.

One thing that I did like about the movie was the implication that the demon nurses were making the monsters, and that they made the Missionary. The X-rays on the walls of the hospital room they are in shows her skull with the saw blades sunk into it, and a dog as well (even though there were no monster dogs in the actual movie, which is disappointing).

The only thing about this movie that makes it worth watching is the monster fight between Pyramid head and the Missionary. That scene is good, and impressive, and led to a strong ending for the film.

Fans of the Silent Hill franchise will notice Easter Eggs in the movie such as Travis Grady, the truck driver, appearing to give Heather and Vincent a ride out of town.

"Silent Hill: Revelation" isn't the best video game movie, but it isn't the worst either. It's sort of in the middle of the two. It suffers from plot holes, poor pacing, and sub-par acting. Even the big name actors such as Carrie-Ann Moss and Malcolm McDowell lacked the on-screen presence that I've grown accustomed to seeing from them. But then again, I do have high standards for horror films.

I will say that the monster fight at the end of the movie make the price of a ticket well worth the trip, but don't pay for the 3D version, just go 2D and call it a day.

Let's Play 'Silent Hill' Part 3: The Nightmare Realm of Midwhich Elementary School

When we last left off in Let's Play Silent Hill Part 2, we had solved the clock tower puzzle and had just entered the Nightmare Realm of Midwhich Elementary School... man is this place creepy. You just never know when something is going to lunge out of the darkness and try to chew your ankles off.


Stepping through the entrance reveals the Nightmare Realm version of the elementary school. The foggy day time have been replaced by the oppressive pitch black darkness of night, the environment has visually changed to a more brutal, cold place filled with industrial clanking sounds, rusted chain link fences and tougher, more aggressive monsters. In the courtyard a huge magical symbol has been drawn in blood on the sidewalk. It's the mark of the demon Samael.



Harry always seems so confused by things.

Speaking of confusing, in the Nightmare Realm of Midwhich school, different doors will be locked, sections of the hallways are now blocked off by chain link fence and there is a new enemy to contend with, the giant cockroaches. The hallways of Midwhich are now darker, with Harry's flashlight illuminating only what  is right in front of him.

Outside the storage room, Harry has no choice but to run through the labyrinthine hallways and use the unlocked doors to get to the far north school room. Inside the classroom, there are several cockroaches, that are just a minor nuisance and easy to run away from. Exiting through the second door of the class room to get around the demon children and avoid having to confront them is the best course of action to take, so that is what I did.

After going through the double doors in the courtyard, I grabbed the ammo and first aid kit in the hallway, then entered the left room, which is the storage area. Inside, there are decapitated dolls crucified on the chain link fence walls, and a bright pink rubber ball sitting on what appears to be a gurney from a hospital.

This is the second time that eerie hospital imagery is used to horrific effect to add to the unsettling mood of the game.

After getting the pink ball, I left the room and ran past the two demon children that are now hanging out in the hallway. With the school now having locked doors where there were none, and doors that won't open at all, Harry has to run an obstacle course through the school in order to get the items he needs to leave the building.

The double doors at the end of the hallway are locked, so I had to go through a long classroom with giant cockroaches scuttling along the floor and out the side door into the next hallway. The next classroom has an open door, and inside are several long tables shoved together in the center of the room with a picture key card on one of them.

Gee, I wonder what this will do Harry. Let's go find out!

I picked up the card and inspected it. It has a picture of a key on it, and images that resemble the large painting that Harry came across in the room next door to the infirmary, near the reception area of the school.

At this point, it's time to return to the front entrance of the school by exiting through the door that leads to the adjacent classroom. Running through a classroom with scattered chairs lying about, I exited through the southern door into the hall and entered through the gray double doors to reach the front hallway on the first floor, and then ran back into the infirmary to save my game on a red notepad. While in the save point room I also picked up a health drink and a first aid kit.

The next room on the left was originally was the school entrance lobby. Now it has a wheelchair and several demon children in it. Yay.

After killing the two demon children, I took the ampoule from the wheelchair and then returned to the reception area, which now looks like the painting that used to be there with a grotesque corpse hanging on either side of a three windowed door.

It's interesting to see how the three windows on the door match the three squares on the picture card. I like that sort of visual clue and it's grotesque symmetry for some reason.

Examining the door will reveal that there is a horizontal slot in the center. I used the key card and shoved it into the slot to unlock the door. Entering the door leads to the other side of the hallway. I went over to the girl's bathroom as it is the only one that is unlocked. Exiting the girl's bathroom teleports Harry to the second floor, in a section of the hallways that he can't reach otherwise and access the boy's bathroom.

See the blue "Notice" sign? It says that "Hell is Coming." Is it a warning from Alessa?

Entering the boys bathroom on the second floor, I picked up several boxes of handgun ammunition, which will be needed for the boss fight. Afterwards I returned to the girl's bathroom and teleported back to the first floor.

Entering the boys bathroom on the first floor, one of the stall doors is closed. Examining the door will show a corpse crucified on the wall with the words written in blood "Leonard Rhine: The Monster Lurks."

This is thought by many to be an homage to a scene in Dean Koontz's "Phantoms" where the phrase "Timothy Flyte- The Ancient Enemy" is written on a mirror with lipstick.

In "Phantoms" Timothy Flyte wrote a novel titled "The Ancient Enemy" that catalogs the mass vanishings of people in different parts of the world. These strange incidences were caused by an amoeboid shapeshifter that attacks towns that are built over the ground where it is hibernating. The creature consumes life forms and can perfectly mimic them, similar to the monster in John Carpenter's "The Thing."

In "Silent Hill" the town is consumed by an unspeakable evil (Alessa) and transformed into a hellish landscape that creates monsters that mimic people's darkest fears.

Just like the pterodactyls that were inspired by creatures from "The Mist" by Stephen King, some of the monsters in "Phantoms" may have been used as inspiration for some of the creatures in "Silent Hill", such as the killer moth, which reflects not only Cheryl's interest in insects, but the overall theme of metamorphosis that is prevalent in "Silent Hill."

And now you know.

Beneath the decomposing body in the bathroom stall, there is a shotgun. Since I missed getting the good pipe and am stuck with the useless rusty pipe that does less damage, picking up the shotgun sounded to me like a great idea. You never know what you will encounter in Silent Hill after all.

Leaving the bathroom, I entered the teacher's room and made my way to the second room through the adjoining door. In this room there are several tables shoved together with blue telephones sitting on them. If you recall, blue is Cheryl and Alessa's color-- it's the color of their dresses and one of their symbols in the game.

         

Blue is also one of the symbols of the Virgin Mary, who is thought to be the mother of Jesus Christ, or God, depending on who you ask. Whether this symbolism was done on purpose or not, it is remarkable to note that one of Alessa's role in "Silent Hill" is to give birth to a god-like figure that will bring paradise into the world.

Just as you go to leave the room, the phone rings, even though it wasn't connected to anything. Spooky.

After the phone call from hell, I wandered up to the roof, where there is a rain gutter, a bloody stone bench and a water tower. Near the bench is the drain pipe hole of the gutter. There is a key in the drain, but Harry can't quite reach it.

Hmm... Looks like we have ourselves another puzzle to solve Harry.

By placing the pink ball in the drain hole located in the corner nearest the water tower, you will block it. Turning the valve on the water tower will cause water to flow out of it and into the drain.


Guess what happens next? That's right Harry, the key flows down the drain, even further out of reach than it originally was. I guess the man never heard of using a metal coat hanger to fish something out of a drain before...

The gutter drain leads down to the courtyard, where the clock tower is located. The key is on the ground near the bottom of the drain. After picking up the key and running away from the three demon children that were harassing me, I went through the double doors, back into the hallway and then over to the locker room where the cat scare occurred during the normal stage of the school.

Here the floor is covered in metal grating and the rattling locker where the cat was has blood dripping out of it. Fortunately, the locker is empty, well, except for all that blood...

This time the jump scare in the locker room is caused by a dead body falling out of a locker when you go to exit the room. There is a key on the body- the library reserve key.

Hey, I like books. What could possibly go wrong in the library? Let's go!

After navigating the labyrinthine hallways, I found the library and made my way inside. Upon closer examination...

What? What do you mean there aren't any useful books! There's one right there! Stupid Harry...

Heh.

On the shelf in the Library Reserve room there is a book titled "The Monster Lurks." Hmm... Let's read that one shall we?

It says:
Chapter 3: Manifestations of Illusions

...Poltergeists are among these Negative emotions, like fear, worry, or stress manifest into external energy with physical effects. Nightmares have, in some cases, been shown to trigger them. However, one such phenomena doesn't appear to happen to just anyone. Although it's not clear why, adolescents, especially girls, are prone to such occurrences.

After picking up a health drink, it was time to go through the door to the Library. With the radio bell ringing incessantly thanks to a squeaking ghost child, I found another open book on a shelf. This one reads:

Hearing this, the hunter armed with bow and arrow said, "I will kill the lizard." But upon meeting his opponent, he held back taunting, "Who's afraid of a reptile?"

At this, the furious lizard hissed, "I'll swallow you up in a single bite!" Then the huge creature attacked, jaws open wide. This was what the man wanted. Calmly drawing his bow, he shot into the lizard's gaping mouth. Effortlessly the arrow flew, piercing the defenseless maw. And the lizard fell down dead.

It's from a fairy tale that Harry read when he was a child. It's also foreshadowing the boss of Midwhich Elementary school, and how to defeat it.

Now we're off to the south side stairwell and down to the first floor. In the hallway there are cockroaches and demon children, which I ran past to the best of my ability, *ahem* but not without being attacked by the ankle biters in the process. Oops.

Upon reaching the chain-link gate with a golden handle, I unlocked the door and entered the hallway. Then it was a quick jaunt back over to the infirmary to save my game.

After the save, it's back to the stairs and down to the basement of the school. In the storage room, I picked up shotgun ammo and an ampoule, then I went to the boiler room.

Inside the boiler room there are two red valve wheels and a creepy turnstile gate. Harry has to move both of the wheels in a certain order to get the turnstile barricades to move and create a clear path for him to go through. Past the turnstile is a hallway that leads to an elevator that only goes one way: down to hell.


Soon, Harry finds himself in a large room surrounded by looming darkness, and he's not alone. The fire light coming from a spiky death pit reveals a giant monitor lizard, also called the "split head lizard" by fans, that is the game's first boss.

Lumbering around the strange contraption at the center of the room is the giant lizard that was foreshadowed in the fairy tale passage that Harry read in the library reserve room. It walks around the room in a weighty gait and it's great head splits open, much like a sandworm from "Dune." If Harry is too close, he is eaten. The only way to kill the beast is to shoot it's open mouth with a shotgun.

On a side note, the weird spinning ball at the center of the room located beneath the flames reminds me of the giant sphere in the engine room of the Event Horizon.

In "Even Horizon," the sphere was a gravity drive that folded space to jump the ship from one point of the galaxy to another. Unfortunately, it traveled through hell to get there.

Now, the first time I ever played this game, that damn lizard gave me one heck of a hard time. But now I know better. I kept my distance, running ahead of the thing as much as possible, and only stopping once it started to open its giant maw.

The lizard does lunge towards Harry, but this is a pattern that is easy to learn and apparently it doesn't do much damage when it does hit you. The trick is to walk backwards while it comes towards you and to shoot at its head to get it to open its mouth. Then it only took two good shots into its gullet with my trusty shotgun and it was finished!

Ha! Take that stupid lizard. That'll teach you to mess with Harry Mason! 

Soon after defeating the lizard, Harry has a vision of Alessa running past him and then disappearing into the darkness. She leaves behind a silver key that will open the door in K. Gordon's house, through which is the only path to reach the other side of the town.

The darkness has lifted outside, and it is once again day time shrouded in a thick heavy fog.

Comforted by the sight of sunlight, I picked up the key and made my way through the now normal halls of Midwhich school and out into the streets, where in the distance, there are church bells ringing.

Up Next: Let's Play Silent Hill Part 4: On the Path to Alchemilla Hospital!
                   

'In Fear Of' Director Mike Polizzi Talks About 'Selenophobia'

Very seldom do I come across a werewolf movie or TV show that is unique and entertaining. "Selenophobia: Fear of the Moon" is an episode of the "In Fear Of" Web series that tastefully portrays a woman's struggle to fight the best within, and the choice her lover has to make to end her life with silver bullets. I liked "Selenophobia" so much, that I decided to interview the director, Mike Polizzi. Check it out!



1. How did you get involved with "In Fear Of?"

I met Scott W. Perry about 19 years ago in a 2-year video production class. He and I shared a common interest in horror films and collaborated on several projects outside the curriculum. We had lost touch in the late 1990s, but then reunited in 2009 when he showed me his films, introduced me to Jeremiah Kipp and inspired me to get behind the camera again.

I found myself writing screenplays, which included “Selenophobia”; not knowing that in April 2012, Scott would tell me about his phobia web series. It was a perfect opportunity to share the story with him and he was glad to include it with “In Fear Of.” 

After several weeks of storyboarding, casting and meeting with the crew: we shot “Selenophobia” in 15 hours on September 15th.

My first involvement with the series was on “Thanatophobia: Fear of Death,” written and directed by Scott. I was his assistant director for the day, and then, later that evening, he asked me to compose some of the soundtrack. I started with “Monophobia: Fear of Being Alone,” and then eventually “Achluophobia: Fear of the Dark.” I also had the honor of composing the series’ opening theme song, which is also heard in the trailer.


2. What attracts you to the horror genre? 

I was an 80s kid that grew up in the movie theater; obsessed with films like “Raiders of the Lost Ark,” “The Dark Crystal” and “Gremlins.” They all had creepy elements that really inspired me. In addition: my father and stepmother always rented VHS horror movies and my stepfather, Ronnie, and I always watched the Universal Monster films of the 1930s and 40s. “Alien” was another film he and I watched repeatedly.

By age 10 I knew I wanted to make supernatural movies in my adult life.

3. Was there any real life influence or experience that you drew on to help you as you worked as the assistant director on "Thanatophobia: Fear of Death?"

“Thanatophobia” was Scott’s project. But, I think most of us fear death. We just don’t want to admit it or think about it. At least I don’t. Having to watch my stepfather pass away at age 57 was a wake up call for me. Life is too short, don’t blow it.


4. Were there any movies that you used as inspiration during your creative process?

I’ve always been drawn to Sam Raimi’s films: the Evil Dead series and Darkman. He really knows how to make a fun movie. I’m also very fond of Tim Burton’s work; especially his 1980s and 90s films.


5. What are you afraid of? Did your short film include aspects of your own phobias?

I fear mother nature. Tornados, tsunamis and earthquakes freak me out. I fear megalomaniacs. 

I don’t personally have a fear of the moon. Although, when I was a kid I had a vision of it colliding with earth; but, that’s just my sci-fi mind on autopilot. 

With “Selenophobia” I wanted to make a unique werewolf movie. I’ve wanted to do so for 10-years. It was a passion project and I must thank the beautiful, talented Louisa Ward for being so amazing in the lead and Mike Lane for his stellar performance. I also thank my crew: Steven-Mark Glassner (cinematographer), Morgan O’Connell (Assistant Director), Ria Schlingheyde (Make-Up) and Jay Priole (Production Assist.). It’s always great to work with friendly, positive people and, most importantly, to have fun in the process.


6. Do you plan on filming more short horror films in the future? If so, what projects are you working on and what can fans expect to see from you in the coming months?

This past May, I made a short zombie comedy called “Dead Drunk,” starring Mike Lane, Adrienne Asterita & Morgan O’Connell. Everyone that’s seen it really enjoyed it, so we’ve decided to make it a web series on YouTube, under my flickgorilla channel. It’s also been chosen to screen at the NYC Horror Film Festival’s Kick Off Party on November 7th. 

Aside from that: I have a couple of horror shorts in development for 2013, including another episode for “In Fear Of.” I am also writing a horror/comedy feature with my old collaborator and friend, Jay Priole.


BIO:

Mike Polizzi is a New York based writer, composer and filmmaker. After attending film school in 1997, he assisted story department executives at Paramount Pictures, and then later published a novella titled “Dead Ed.” His latest work can be viewed at flickgorilla.com

'In Fear Of' Youtube Web Series Director Scott Perry Talks About 'Achluophobia'

Scott Perry directed three episodes of the new horror Web series on Youtube called "In Fear Of." They are "Thanatophobia: Fear of Death," "Achluophobia: Fear of the Dark" and "Monophobia: Fear of Being Alone." All three are very well done and manage to create a suspenseful atmosphere full of dread and terror. "Monophobia" is about a serial killer who acts a little like Ted Bundy, killing people just to prevent them from leaving her. It is full of dark humor and has a twisted ending that I just loved. "Thanatophobia" has a twist ending that is not easy to predict, something that is extremely hard to pull off and shows just how talented Perry is. "Achluophobia" is by far the best in terms of creating a suspenseful atmosphere. It has a way of getting to you that very few short horror films do, and is definitely a must see for anyone who loves to be scared.

How did you get involved with "In Fear Of?"

In Fear Of came about when I was looking to do something fresh and unique pertaining to the horror genre, which I love. Horror at its most basic is the element of fear. One day I came across a webpage of a list of phobias and I was surprised at just how many there are. I talked to my good friend Jeremiah Kipp thinking this could make an interesting web series. Six weeks later we’re filming "Monophobia" with Debbie Rochon and David Marancik and the series was off.

What attracts you to the horror genre? 

What attracts me most about the horror genre is that no other genre in film can stir up so many emotions within you. There are also so many sub-genres that really stretch the limits of what horror truly is. For the most part above all, it’s the ability to thrill. We all like a sense of fear and danger to our lives and horror can stimulate that for you. I believe the films in this series do a great job in representing how far the genre can stretch, from laughter in “Monophobia,” creeped out in “Podophobia,” thrilled by “Selenophobia,” saddened by the tragedy in “Thanatophobia,” psychologically freaked out in “Apehephobia,” and scared to the edge of your seat in “Achluophobia.” No other genre can stir so much within you and that’s why I’ll always love the horror genre.

Was there any real life influence or experience that you drew on to direct "Achluophobia: Fear Of the Dark?"

There wasn’t a specific real life influence on me but one of the reasons why it was chosen is because, while I tried to steer away from the more commonly known phobias, to many their first ever fear in life is a fear of the dark. How many of us as children had a night light on so we wouldn’t be in total darkness when we slept? That led to fear of monsters, fear of the Boogeyman, and a variety of phobias that we can inhabit in our lifetimes, but credit the darkness to begin f-ing up our minds.

Was there any movie that you used as inspiration during your creative process?

When I came up with the idea of "Fear Of The Dark," I knew immediately I wanted the only light source to be via candlelight. I like to shoot my own projects when I can but by no means am I an expert with the camera. I did want to see if this could be done, and with the way technology is today, we have equipment that can capture excellent images with low lighting. However, I looked at Stanley Kubrick’s “Barry Lyndon” for inspiration, as a majority of his epic and overlooked film (compared to his other masterpieces) was shot using nothing but candlelight so I studied that film and read up on what he did to accomplish this. For the tone of the film, I looked at, not that I needed the excuse, Dario Argento’s “Suspiria,” namely the opening scene. In his prime, very few were able to master the art of suspense like Argento had and I particularly loved how he used shadows and darkness in those opening moments to incorporate total fear.

When it came to casting, my first and only choice was Raine Brown. I had worked with Raine on my short film “Insatiable,” which we did in 2008, and had promised to work together again. I had such a great time working with her that when this came up, I wanted her to be in it. Raine has a tremendous ability to use her body as a tool and her reactions to the situation around her is a huge reason why “Achluophobia: Fear Of The Dark” works so well. 

What are you afraid of? Did your short film include aspects of your own phobias?

The phobia that I relate to most out of the first season of “In Fear Of” is certainly Monophobia. I work an erratic schedule, nights and weekends, so when there are a lot of events with friends, I have a difficulty attending due to that. Working and editing can lead to a lonely existence sometimes so when I do make a project, I never want it to end because I don’t feel alone when I do it. It’s one of the reasons why “Monophobia” was the first episode shot, and I couldn’t be more thrilled than to have Debbie Rochon and David Marancik collaborate on the episode. It started as a bit of a joke that I wanted to see Debbie prevent David, her best friend, from leaving a house on a dinner date, and it escalated to something fun and horrific. We premiered the film at the Buffalo Screams Horror Film Festival where it won Best Horror Comedy Short Film which was a nice surprise.  

The other episode I wrote and directed, “Thanatophobia: Fear Of Death,” is another fear that I think we all have, and one that I certainly have. It was originally a fear of cemeteries but looking at the theme, it was discussed by cast and crew that "Fear Of Death" was a better name for it. I’m 35 now and I spent a lot of my 20s thinking I was invincible, plus sadly I’ve been surrounded by many family members and friends passing away. Jeremiah Kipp has recognized that in all my work, a common theme and element is death. I love the episode and working with both Suzi Lorraine and Damien Colletti was such a pleasure. It’s more dramatic than scary but has a message I think everyone can relate to.

Do you plan on filming more short horror films in the future? If so, what projects are you working on and what can fans expect to see from you in the coming months?

I do. There will be a second season of “In Fear Of” which I hope will bring more directors, more actors, and more phobias overall which I will begin prepping in January, and I am working on a short film that’s a passion project for me next year which I hope to be completed in time for the festival circuit next fall. As of now, I am looking forward to showing these excellent short films to everyone and that they enjoy watching them as much as we enjoyed making them.

New Youtube series 'In Fear Of' Director Jeremiah Kipp Talks About 'Podophobia'

"In Fear Of" is a horror anthology Web series that goes live this week on Youtube on Halloween. I had the chance to catch a sneak peek at the series, and was really impressed with how truly terrifying this series is. In fact, I was so impressed that I decided to interview three of the directors from the series. My first interview was with Jeremiah Kipp, who I interviewed last year and reviewed his wonderful short horror films, "Contact" and "Crestfallen."

Jeremiah Kipp directed two episodes of "In Fear Of" titled "Podophobia" and "Aphephobia." "Podophobia" is about a woman who has an intense fear of feet. "Aphephobia" is about a woman who is terrified of being touched. Both episodes are in Kipp's signature black and white filming style, and are without dialogue, so the emotional impact of the episodes create a very raw, intense viewing experience that is both terrifying and exhilarating at the same time.

1. How did you get involved with "In Fear Of?"

Scott W. Perry approached me to participate in his Web series about fear, sending me a list of perhaps 200 phobias.  He said I could choose whichever ones I wanted to make into a film, and they'd become a part of this online anthology.  I met Scott on the set of Alan Rowe Kelly's THE BLOOD SHED back in 2006, and since then he's become a part of the east coast horror community mainly as a journalist supporting other independent filmmakers.  I thought it was commendable that Scott wanted to get back to his true passion, making films.  IN FEAR OF is one of many projects Scott has been dabbling in of late, and since making a Web series is fast, cheap and you have an immediate result, I decided to get involved.

2. What attracts you to the horror genre? 

It's a very emotional genre.  There's only so far naturalistic drama can push, but horror can get us further and provoke us with images beyond reality.  John Carpenter's THEY LIVE is a great example of genre being used to express a legitimate social fear.  George Romero's MARTIN and NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD are incredibly emotional genre films that tap into feelings of isolation, loss, hope against all odds...that's pretty powerful stuff!  And having aliens or zombies or vampires requires a leap of the imagination.  It gets us into an area of "reality plus" that is closer to our dreams and our desires.

3. Was there any real life influence or experience that you drew on to direct "Podophobia?"

PODOPHOBIA is the fear of feet, and I have no such fear.  I approached Paul Pastore, who I had worked with previously on a slasher movie trailer called SERIAL SCHOOL. I knew the material would be up his alley, and he generously financed that episode.  Once I had the wonderful actors Xiomara Cintron and Alejandro Santoni in place, I did draw from personal experience a little, but that had more to do with the rawness of being in a relationship and having the feeling of discovering something scary and new in the other person, tapping into a hidden anguish.  That can happen, and when it does it can be terrifying.

4. Were there any movies that you used as inspiration during your creative process?

Scott told me I was inspired by David Lynch for the "fear of feet" movie and David Cronenberg for the "fear of touch" movie.  It wasn't conscious; though I love their films very much.  I was looking at a lot of the fine art photography of Brooke Shaden when preparing APHEPHOBIA; she creates these disturbing magical images that tend to be pressing down on a female character.  

As for PODOPHOBIA, we drew more from the imagination of the actors and myself.  I'm also a fan of the Polish director Andrzej Zulawski, whose movies push to the extremes of human behavior. Maybe that was an influence too.

5. What are you afraid of? Did your short film include aspects of your own phobias?

My deepest fears are of being controlled by someone else, either in the form of a cult or of someone who is able to persuade me to do something against my better moral judgment.  I guess that's why I'm scared of films like INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS, THE THING and Todd Haynes's SAFE.  While I love people as individuals, large groups tend to scare me.  It's odd that I love living in New York City so much since you are continually encountering masses strangers. Crowded subway trains mortify me a little, and I'm sure I drew on that for APHEPHOBIA.  I certainly had a conversation or two about that with our lead actress, Kelly Rae LeGault.  As for PODOPHOBIA, I'm not afraid of feet, but the mysteries of the human heart are unpredictable and sometimes leap out in outrageous ways.

Xiomara Cintron tapped into a very specific, personal terror when playing the role.  It was interesting to see her in a scene opposite child actors who, for a moment, thought she was truly losing control.  I think they got a little scared.  After I called cut, I asked Xiomara, "Were you in total control of your instrument there?" She nodded and said she was, and that she felt safe, which is how she could allow herself to go there.  The child actors looked at each other with a gleam in their eyes, as if they had discovered some beautiful truth about acting; that you can go anywhere and arrive back safely.

6. Do you plan on filming more short horror films in the future? If so, what projects are you working on and what can fans expect to see from you in the coming months?

I'm ready to transition over to more feature films.  The short form has been good to me; I love building towards a small sharp shock and love it in the way I enjoy the stories of Edgar Allan Poe, H.P. Lovecraft or Nathaniel Hawthorne.  I wish there was a greater market for short genre films, though my colleagues Alan Rowe Kelly, Anthony Sumner and Bart Mastronardi have been smart about making anthologies.  But I've become more enamored with the idea of a long form narrative, and have a monster movie I'd love to make.  That said, I do have a new short film coming soon called THE DAYS GOD SLEPT, shot by my frequent cinematographer Dominick Sivilli and scored by the wonderful Harry (FRIDAY THE 13th) Manfredini, set in a mysterious gentleman's club where the fabric of reality gets turned upside down.  It's a film that is both beautiful and macabre, and I can't wait to share it with everyone.

About the Director

Jeremiah Kipp's directing credits include THE SADIST starring Tom Savini, THE POD starring Larry Fessenden, CONTACT (commissioned by Sinister Six annual screening series), THE DAYS GOD SLEPT, CRESTFALLEN, THE CHRISTMAS PARTY (Cannes and Clermont-Ferrand), EASY PREY (commissioned by NYC's annual VisionFest), DROOL (commissioned by Mandragoras Art Space), SNAPSHOT and THE APARTMENT (commissioned by Canon to premiere their XL2 at DV Expo 2004). 

Producing credits include the feature films SATAN HATES YOU (created by Glass Eye Pix, starring Angus Scrimm, Michael Berryman and Reggie Bannister), GOD'S LAND, LET'S PLAY, IN MONTAUK, THE JONESTOWN DEFENSE and THE BED-THING (directed by Pulitzer Prize-nominated Matt Zoller Seitz). Assistant director credits include I SELL THE DEAD starring Dominic Monaghan, SOMEWHERE TONIGHT starring John Turturro, ONE NIGHT starring Melissa Leo, and the Sundance Award-winning MAN (dir: Myna Joseph).