Ditched

The premise is good. An ambulance and a police car are off the road and the ambulance is overturned. They were transporting prisoners to a hospital. It was not an accident. We soon get to realize the prisoners are really bad people. Really bad, and the accident happened in a place with no cell service, and radios can't get out of the canyon. Melina is the paramedic that seemed to have suffered a concussion, but soon seems the most lucid. Another paramedic suffered a broken shin, and the third was stunned, but seemed to recover. But Melina is the most able to get around. So it is not an accident, and one expects that there is something about the prisoners. Either to release them, or get revenge on them. There are strangers in the woods, wearing total camouflage that are very threatening, and they decapitate the one cop, who was driving the police car, when he tried to get to higher ground to get a signal out. So it is not looking good for them. Melina only wants to get back to her daughter Lily, and is determined to survive until help can arrive. To that point, it is done very well. The problem is that the movie continues, and while it is only a movie, it is not believable for the scenario then presented.

An ambulance carrying some dangerous prisoners crashes late one night, leaving both police, paramedics and convicts stuck in the woods. Then things get worse when they discover there are those waiting for them in the darkness who have lethal intentions towards them.

It's a low-budget flick which is effectively one main location, i.e. The stricken ambulance where the survivors of the crash try and make it out alive. I know it's a nit-pick, but the film is well too stylishly lit for deep in the woods during the middle of the night. Bright neon lights of all colours seem to light up every scene which - although looking pretty - just doesn't seem real.

But, apart from that very minor gripe, the cast do their jobs well enough. There are some revelations as the characters try to figure up what they're up against and why they're here. The budget is low. I was almost about to turn the film off when I saw what was waiting for them in the woods, but the film quickly pointed out that those lurking in the shadows weren't supposed to be anything you - technically - couldn't see in real life, so I gave the film a pass.

It was entertaining enough. The main antagonist over-acts a bit and sometimes comes across as a little 'too British' (I have no idea of the actor's ethnicity, so I have no idea whether he was putting on the accent. It's not a bad story if you're watching it on a streaming platform - just be sure to ignore the plot holes and the ending is a little vague (but I may just have missed something). Perhaps I wasn't in the mood to be very forgiving on this one as the fact that the computer generated blood effects seemed to be the 'wrong way round' in my opinion, i.e. A pistol shot to the head completely destroys the whole human head whereas a shotgun blast to the face leaves the victim completely intact, minus some blood spatter at the rear.

The concept was a pretty good one and the photography is decent. The film is hurt by poor dialogue and stiff performances all around. There's a good film in here, this just isn't the product we're provided.

'Ditched' is an interesting and unusual Canadian horror story with a unique directorial style and a truly superb electronic soundtrack by Clayton Worbeck (I wish it was available to buy - can't find it anywhere).

At the centre of this lies a storyline that is not unfamiliar. The twist at the end places the tale in familiar territory, but where this succeeds is in the way the tale is told. We begin at a point where the action has already started and the cast of characters attempts to piece events together alongside the audience. The dialogue is sometimes irritating (too much of the 'we can *do* this' grandstanding).

The cinematography is unusual and striking, with key moments and characters often obscured by sickly yellow/red lighting. Viewers should be warned that the continual flashing of lights might induce additional discomfort - but although overused, it works very well ensuring that nothing appears to be quite real.

The third act is when the increasingly confusing narrative becomes a mix of lengthy exposition and events that ask too much of the audience. Far too much talking deadens the atmosphere, which is a shame. A definite case of the journey proving more enjoyable than the destination, in my view. My score is 5 out of 10.

Well, I will say that the 2021 movie "Ditched" definitely started out quite alright and proved entertaining. But then when you get to the point where it is revealed what is actually going on, then the movie just lost all momentum for me and it become a pointless and laughable ordeal to sit through.

When I sat down in 2022 to watch this 2021 movie from writer and director Christopher Donaldson, then I didn't know what I was in for, aside from it being a horror movie. And that was essentially all that was needed to make me watch it.

But "Ditched" was a swing and a miss of a movie. What started out quite interesting quickly deflated and became a boring ordeal. But hey, I am sure that there is an audience out there somewhere for a movie such as this. I just, obviously, wasn't a part of the target audience. I am sure that the script was great on paper, but the transition to the screen just wasn't all that grand of an experience.

I will say that the acting performances in "Ditched" were adequate. Especially when taking into consideration that the movie had a small cast ensemble, took place in a very small and limited location, and the fact that the script went from being good to rubbish in a split second.

If you enjoy horror movies then "Ditched" is not one I would recommend you waste your time, money or effort on.

My rating of "Ditched" lands on a generous three out of ten stars, and that is mostly because of the production value that was put into the making of the movie.