The Shortround: House Call (Review)

Erik L Wilson is a filmmaker from Chicago and recently dropped me a line on his new short House Call. It's headed to film festivals soon so be on the lookout. House Call is a supernatural short filled with creepy creeps, betrayal and revenge. Here be the plot.

Synopsis: Janice does the unthinkable in order to start a new life with her new boyfriend. However, strange things begin to happen on the night of their one year anniversary.

the jaded viewer says: With any supernatural or ghost story, you've gotta go all slow burn to get the desired effect of jump scares and BOOs! House Call does just that in creating an atmosphere of slow burn eerie that will eventually lead to vengeance. Pacing, suspense are built up nicely and Wilson takes his time to develop the characters and the story. A few wrinkles of CGI are even added as a voodoo mom exacts her dish best served cold.

My problem with this short are the characters. None are remotely empathetic and you pretty much want all of them to die because all their actions are pretty much evil. Who should I root for? The evil people or the more evil people? It's this that had me not caring about Janice, her boyfriend or the ex.

Some nice touches are thrown in like a neighbor's call and some rad gore and makeup effects. But it's an uneven balance and all in all House Call is effective but average supernatural macabre tale.

Check out the trailer.

House Call -- Horror Short -- Trailer from Erik L. Wilson on Vimeo.

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Categories: horror short, short, short film, the shortround