Something in the Dirt

I can't quite put my finger on it but after the first 30 minutes I was so lost, bored and tired that I didn't really care much for what was coming next. I think if this had been one of their earlier films, I would have appreciated it more. But I expected better from them at this point. I was expecting something more cinematic, and I feel like it was a heavily filtered movie that just didn't live up to my expectations.

I think the movie tried to do too much and the filmmakers were given too much freedom to do so because of their success on previous projects. I may revisit it one day, but for now, I remain neutral on this one.

After moving into a new apartment, a down-on-his-luck guy and his neighbor witness a series of weird phenomenon taking place in the location and decide to start filming the supernatural events to become famous, but it starts to wear on them the longer they're together investigating the forces.

There's very little to this one that makes it worthwhile. Among the few positives to be had here is the intriguing setup that propels this one along into a somewhat decent storyline about what they've been going through. As the experiences here in the first part focuses on their relationship building and bringing their interest in the supernatural to a centerpiece which sets everyone off on a rather fun rabbit hole of discovery involving the series of discoveries they make. Delving into this particular aspect of the genre rather than utilizing an endless series of jump-scares about something popping up behind someone unexpectedly adds a depth to this particular part of the film that's quite refreshing. Combined with the rather fun comedic stylings between the two friends as we get to explore their friendship, this creates enough to make it worthwhile. There are far more factors here that bring it down, though. The main drawback is that, for a film this long, it doesn't have much in the way of genuine genre thrills at all. The ghosts and paranormal activity here don't have any kind of malicious intent behind them, rendering a lot of the running time of the film to become rather dull as the ghosts aren't out to do anything interesting other than provide an excuse for them to go into their research and debates about what's going on. For those wanting an endless stream of ghost action or genuine genre thrills, that leaves a lot of this one to feel like the two are simply yakking at each other with nothing else going on, especially when it comes close to the two-hour mark with very little happening. These factors really end up bringing this one down being far more impactful than any of its positives.

Rated Unrated/R: Graphic Language and Violence.

Justin and Aaron's masterpieces came early in their career (Resolution, Spring, and The Endless), so as fans we expect to get that type of storytelling and movie making every time. We expect greatness every time, so when it's not, we're literally disappointed, and maybe even saddened. This movie may be great, this review is based on one viewing, but as of now I was totally letdown. It had all the elements of a classic Benson and Moorhead production, and until we got over the 1 hour mark, I still had hope (Remember, not much happened in the first half of Resolution), but as the movie was getting closer and closer to the end, I knew this wasn't going to make it to their "Mount Rushmore" of films. I love conspiracy theories and sci-fi, but the movie provided no definitive answers, and honestly became hard to keep track of the more the movie progressed.

This sounds like a hit piece, it's not meant to be. I'm just a huge fan overly expressing my disappointment with the movie not being another "Resolution" or "The Endless" (although I counted 5 Easter eggs to The Endless in this movie). These guys will always be in my top tier of movie makers and writers and I will always be a huge fan. I will still continue to get excited for EVERY movie they make.

Diverting enough flick written and directed by the stars. Two thirty-somethings, who can barely swing the monthly rent on the dives they live in, are neighbors in an apartment building. As they introduce themselves they find that perhaps they are too different to hang. Then, an ashtray starts to float in a halo of light. When they come to terms with the floating and glowing of things they realize that have to film this. This is proof of ghosts, or aliens, or afterlife, or whatever it is. They have to film it, edit it into a cohesive documentary, and get rich quick. So that's what they set out to do, aside from and around their arguments. As they argue and insult they uncover truths and each other's pain in life.

Another original film by the duo Benson/Moorhead. But this time was more focused on drama and character development by the two lead protagonists/directors. The mystery of the phenomenon had me pretty interested throughout the movie but at certain point I kinda gave up on it since the accent was put so much more on the effects and the relationship between the two guys rather than the story or the origin of the phenomenon.

BUT, this film also gave me strong Resolution (2012) vibes. Resolution too was a movie about two dudes in similar situation but with very different relationship and backstories, then years later The Endless (2017) explained in glorious way the questions we had about The Resolution back in 2012.

It may be silly to assume, but we miiight just get another sequel/prequel regarding the unanswered backstory of Something in the Dirt.