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Released by: Independent Entertainment
Released on: February 23rd, 2016.
Director: William Hellfire
Cast: Erin Russ, David Yow
Year: 2014
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The Movie:
Before starting 2014's Upsidedown Cross, director William Hellfire hadn't made a movie since 2008. But if you're going to make a comeback, you might as well go all out, and that's what he's done with this movie, a well-made low-budget picture. Not surprisingly, given his past output, the film (co-written by Hellfire and Mike Hunchback) heads into some fairly seedy territory.
The movie tells the story of a beautiful but troubled young woman named Nadine (Erin Russ). She's been on her on for a while and has turned to prostitution to support her drug habit. She's also been abused by the local cops and pretty much just put through the ringer in every way a woman in her situation could be. In hopes of cleaning herself up, she opts to head back home and live with her mother, Delilah (Colleen Cohan), a woman whose Christian faith is completely obsessive to the point where, in her own way, she's just as unhealthy as her daughter.
Delilah, quite literally, believes Nadine to be possessed by demons. Devout in her beliefs to the point of fanaticism, she sets out to find someone to help exorcise her daughter and she finds it in the form of a preacher (David Yow) whose methodology is unorthodox. He offers to perform an exorcism on Nadine for a fee, and Delilah agrees. Once the preacher has been let into their home and into Nadine's room, however, his behavior starts to hint at his true nature and intent. There's more to it than that but that's the basic plot.
It's clear from the start that this tale is going to take us into some pretty dark territory. Nadine has made some poor decisions and those decisions have consequences of very unpleasant kind. While her mother's house seems to at least offer her the refuge most of us would expect when turning to a parent or loved one for help, that soon dissolves into bizarre and misguided religious fervor. Hellfire wears his feelings on his sleeve here in that regard (he does call himself William Hellfire after all) so it'll surprise no one to learn that the preacher is very much a devil in disguise, but how he and the cast go about the reveal in the movie is interesting watch. This is a deliberately paced picture that takes its time and in doing so, succeeds in building character. This gives the last half of the movie some pretty solid impact, not just because of what happens specifically so much as how and why it happens. But we shall tread no closer to spoiler territory than that.
Performances are strong. Erin Russ manages to be both vulnerable and, in a strange way, very strong in her work in front of the camera. This is not a performance that looks for modesty and Russ has no trouble with the picture's stronger content, but there's depth and believability to her work here. That goes a long way towards making her character feel less a damaged damsel in distress and more of an actual living, breathing human, flawed or not. David Yow, best known for fronting Jesus Lizard, is clearly a man comfortable with confrontation (check out live footage of his work with that band for proof) and he uses that aggressive style well in Upsidedown Cross. Yow's work here is rock solid. Colleen Cohen is also quite good and while her character can't help but remind of you Piper Laurie in Carrie, she makes the part her own.
Video/Audio/Extras:
Upsidedown Cross arrives on DVD in 1.78.1 anamorphic widescreen. Colors look pretty good but things are a bit bleak in that regard so they don't pop the way they might in a cheerier looking film. Black levels are decent and detail is good for a standard definition presentation. Compression artifacts aren't a problem but there's a bit of crush in some of the scenes with heavier blacks. Aside from that, this looks quite good.
The English language Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo track does a fine job of handling everything that the movie throws at it. There's a fair amount of depth here and the dialogue is properly balanced against the score and the sound effects.
Bonus features include a still gallery and some trailers as well as menus and chapter selection. Inside the case, along with the DVD, however, is an amusing 'Chick Tract' that was drawn by underground comic artist Mike Diana (he of Boiled Angel infamy).
The Final Word:
Upsidedown Cross, which is limited to 1000 copies on DVD, isn't exactly the feel good movie of the year but it's smart, well-made and it features a selection of strong performances. The script is intelligent and the slow burn approach that Hellfire opts for this time around definitely works in its favor. The disc isn't stacked with extras but it's got a few supplements and it looks and sounds quite good. If you're into the darker, more cerebral side of indie horror, you'd do well to check this one out.
