‘WRETCH’ Review

To a certain extent, I think I have a soft spot for indie films. I think much of the time more care is put into some of these low budget films because there is less pressure to fill pockets and more pressure to create art. So when the opportunity to review one comes around,  I’m usually game. But in a move to make art, sometimes we obscure the basics. And this, unfortunately, is the fate of Wretch, a new film by Monsters Wanted team Janel Nash and Brian Cunningham.

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The story is about three friends, Riker (Riker Hill), Caleb (Spencer Korcz), and Abby (Megan Massie), who begin to believe after a wild night in the woods that dark forces are against them.

My issues with this film are pretty straightforward: it’s kind of all over the place. It wants to pay homages while being a psychological thriller and a monster movie at the same time. The more you watch, the more you realize that the direction of this film lacks a focus, and as a result, it just seems kind of silly. Between weird sex scenes and a flurry of different angles, this film doesn’t really stay on target.

And the problem is the lack of direction kind of permeates everything else. It’s obvious that the principal cast feel as confused as the audience, and that just doesn’t help their acting. It’s not terrible acting, but the confusion carries over to the emotional range of all involved. Not only that, but the sexual content of the film seems forced, like its there to fill a void left by the lack of cohesion.

The other obvious issue is that the quality, while not always a downer, is lacking in some places. There were a few sequences where there was only silence. There was no music ,sound effects or ambient noise. In a normal instance, I would say it was intentional, but in this case, it seems like there was just an audio issue that was glaring.

There was one last, very clear issue from this film. It’s way too long. Where I believe an ending should be, the movie just keeps going. It compounds an already suffering plot and it’s sad. The idea of this film, however muddled, is good. And the details are there along with the right pieces, but there isn’t enough meat to sustain the bones.

Overall, it’s a pretty mediocre film. It tries hard, and with the right team could be made into something nice, but at this point, the magic just isn’t there. If you want to take a chance, I would say it’s possible to like, but I can’t totally recommend it.

WRETCH is now available on the following platforms:

Amazon | iTunes | Google Play | Vudu