Strange Harvest

Strange Harvest had so much promise, blending its true crime element seamlessly into an eerie, gripping story. For most of the runtime, I was hooked with the pacing, atmosphere, and slow-burn tension were top notch. Unfortunately, the ending completely fizzled. There's barely any satisfying conclusion, and not even a clever final twist to leave on a high note. It's such a shame, because the rest was so strong. A 6/10 for me. Worth watching, but the final moments left me more frustrated than thrilled.

I'm a huge fan of found-footage, mockumentary style filmmaking. I really love and appreciate the illusion of truth convincingly told through interviews, first-hand accounts, character exploration etc., and this new independent horror film "Strange Harvest" checks off the boxes I needed to go see it in theatres. It's also the same writer/director who gave us "Grave Encounters", a personal favorite of mine.

Stuart Ortiz's new project centers around a ghostly serial killer with a cosmic agenda and a ritualistic manner of executing his victims. Much like the infamous Zodiac killer he enjoys taunting and mocking law enforcement with cryptic letters while meticulously tracking his victims to make sure they fit his demented criteria. We are told all of this through a series of ongoing interviews with San Bernardino County detectives and investigators as well as friends and loved ones of some of the victims. Overall I felt the acting was really solid and clean, if I wasn't already used to this style of filmmaking I would have genuinely believed these were true accounts that simply went under my radar. I would have assumed there's been a sadistic and disturbed man rampaging through the inland empire.

I've never seen this style of filmmaking on the big screen before, but I'm very glad I did and I do highly recommend this to anyone who loves and wants to support independent horror projects or anyone interested in the world of true crime mystery and lore. (8/10)

True-crime programs on TV wish they could be this good.

Like Grave Encounters (2011) before it, Strange Harvest dissects a type of TV program and creates an imitation even better than the original. This is The Silence of the Lambs (1991) as an episode of Forensic Files (1996), a sinister episode of Law & Order (1990) taken to its horrific logical extreme.

I saw Strange Harvest at the Nevermore Film Festival. It's a simple, low budget portrayal of a straightforward premise (at least until the end), yet masterfully executed. Peter Zizzo and Terri Apple are quite believable as average suburban police detectives pursuing what they uncover to be an extraordinary crime spree. By telling the story in chronological order, the audience knows what the detectives knew at the time and share their confusion in trying to make sense of the crimes, the lack of evidence, and their frustration in trying to identify the perpetrator and track him down because he disappears like a ghost. Each crime is different, and one in particular in a swimming pool is as diabolical as the traps in the Saw (2004) movies.

The Blair Witch Project (1999), the mother of all found footage films, used its documentary film style to seem totally real. Strange Harvest creates a similar fake reality that makes the audience feel like they're learning about an incident that really happened. The story's simplicity and its streamlined portrayal make it all the more convincing. I've watched a lot of big budget horror movies that aren't nearly as compelling as Strange Harvest.

There's an extra scene after the credits, be sure to stay for that.

Saw this at Nevermore Film Festival in Durham, NC. This film nails the true-crime documentary format, with two hard-boiled detectives relating the story of how they worked to track down a serial killer in San Bernardino County, CA. It's like an extended edition of Dateline crossed with horror, and that's a grand compliment.

There are a lot of killings for the detectives to describe, but leads Peter Zizzo (Det. Joe Kirby) and Terri Apple (Det. Alexis 'Lexi' Taylor) keep it intensely interesting. Their sincere performance helps ground the film, which has a lot of pretty horrifying details to relate.

Although their testimony are mostly filmed seated (separately) in a studio, there are plenty of on-site details of the murders, and insightful and realistic interviews with the people who knew the victims.

The identity of the killer, who calls himself Mr. Shiny, and his reason for his killing spree is kept partially unknown to us until late in the film, which helps slowly ratchet up the suspense from beginning to end.

The film is quite gory, as it doesn't shy away from showing us the aftermath of the murders, each grisly in its own warped way.

When you realize the real reason for the murders (which you might guess sooner than I), the film takes on another dimension of fright.

To finish, if you like police procedurals, but find them too tame, this fictional account is a remarkable likeness of the format, as long as you're ready for some disturbing images.

The vibes of Fincher's Zodiac combined with Lovecraftian cosmic horror, expertly presented in a found footage/true crime documentary format. It's unsettling, interesting, and compelling, with some great practical effects and an intriguing antagonist. I absolutely love found footage horror, I think it's a sub-genre that, when put in the right hands, can lead to some truly creative filmmaking. This is now a new favorite of mine, and has the potential to become a classic of the genre.