From Within review

The great quality of horror films is the versatility of the genre. Horror can be gory like HOSTEL or terrifying due to the unknown like witnessed in THE OTHERS. There are many fans of slasher flicks, but sometimes the horror is subtle and comes from within. Unbeknownst to myself, I wrote the last sentence without realizing that it’s the perfect segway to discuss FROM WITHIN. I was hesitant to see this movie, because my goal at Fantasia is to see predominantly Asian cinema, but I decided that I needed to see at least one American horror picture. I’m glad I chose this film.

FROM WITHIN is directed by Phedon Papamichael, a renowned cinematographer who did such films as 3:10 TO YUMA, WALK THE LINE, and many others. The cast is relatively unknown except for a few noticeable stars that fill out the supporting cast. Adam Goldberg, Steven Culp, Rumer Willis, and Thomas Dekker from THE SARAH CONNOR CHRONICLES fame who plays the male lead Aidan. Elizabeth Rice, who portrays Lindsay, resembles a younger Lindsay Lohan.

FROM WITHIN takes place in small town America in a bible belt community. The movie literally starts off with a bang as a chain of suicides grip the town. The residents cope with the suicides with their faith and are blaming Aidan Spindler for the deaths as he isn’t Catholic. After Lindsay saves him from a beating from her boyfriend, they are in a race against time to unravel the mysteries of the deaths and from an uprising religious community who is out for blood.

The nice thing about this movie is that the cast is not your typical incredibly attractive cast like you see in Gossip Girl or the OC. They don’t have the Luke Perry syndrome where they are 30 year olds portraying teens. They actually look and act like regular teenagers. Lindsay looks like she is 15 although it was mentioned in the Q and A session after the film that she is 21. This film isn’t for everyone as there aren’t too many scares. There is a general creepiness near the beginning with the mannequins in the store and old music blaring on the radio. But the genuine horror in this movie comes from the citizens themselves as their religious ideals and intolerance clashes with the Spindler’s who are non believers.

During the fourth suicide we see how they are committing suicide but we don’t know the reason behind it. We slowly learn more tidbits as the film progresses and there are a couple of nice twists, but they fit within the context of the story and are not overdone or coming out of nowhere like some horror movies. I had an issue with one of the suicides when a smashed car ignited in flames. Technically it was more of an accident than a suicide, but it is so inconsequential that it’s barely worth mentioning. FROM WITHIN is subtle, with a rich story, and some crazy religious fanatics but it’s the opening few minutes that draw you into this film.

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