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Review: Dave Franco’s ‘The Rental’ Takes a Trip in the House of Horror

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The Rental Movie

For Dave Franco’s directorial debut, he made the wise choice to make it horror. It’s a genre that offers a lot of flexibility in the details, as long as the film works. Co-written by Franco and Joe Swanberg (V/H/S, Drinking Buddies), The Rental takes some creative chances that mark Franco as a curious new talent to watch for. 

The Rental follows Charlie (Dan Stevens, The Guest, Apostle) and his wife Michelle (Alison Brie, Community, Glow), who pair up with Charlie’s brother, Josh (Jeremy Allen White, Shameless), and Josh’s girlfriend/Charlie’s business partner, Mina (Sheila Vand, A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night) to rent a seemingly perfect house for a weekend getaway. But what begins as a festive weekend for the four close friends turns into something far more sinister as secrets they’ve kept from each other are exposed and paranoia grows that they may not be alone.

Visually, The Rental has that muted it’s-fall-at-the-beach aesthetic that hovers a sense of dread over the proceedings. This isn’t a bright, happy, sunny season of fun and adventure, it’s a dreary sense of cold that settles in, even in a warmly lit room. It sets a moody tone that carries throughout the film.

Franco — no stranger to working in front of the camera — pushes the actors by limiting the shot reverse shot framing, opting instead to hold the camera on one character while the dialogue happens around them. The camera doesn’t jump around during group conversations, it often works its way through the room, person by person, while the actors take their time to react to what’s being said. It creates a sense of intimacy that allows you to click in to the characters a bit more, but it also draws attention to the sometimes clunky script. 

Though the script isn’t all that complex, it’s Alison Brie as Michelle who really sells it. Franco — who is married to Brie — knows the talent he’s working with here. Brie’s sincerity and deeply likable nature (and her role as the voice of reason) makes Michelle the only character you really care about. When she ducks out of the first night of partying and is left to roll on her own the next day, there’s something so subtle about her performance that beautifully communicates her hurt and frustration while still keeping a smiling face. 

As far as “house rental” horror goes, The Rental certainly brings up some worst case scenarios. Hidden cameras and a body count combine to create what must be a really bad trip for poor Michelle. While the dialogue makes a very strong attempt to seem organic, the weight of the situation is real enough that you can connect to the reactions of each character. The script sounds awkward, but you can still get why it works.

Though the plot meanders in one direction for quite some time, things really take off when it shifts gears. I’m trying really hard to avoid spoilers here, but The Rental essentially sets itself up as one thing before flipping to another. It’s a surprise slasher that is never fully explained, which is where the horror genre can be very forgiving; in the genre, things often don’t require explanation in order for them to work. 

That said, there are other horror films that have done a similar formula with better execution, but there’s something about the set up that makes The Rental work. We’re dedicated to one thing for so long that the end result feels almost inconsequential, but I actually don’t mind it. It’s a snapshot. It does what few films dare to do — it toys with commitment and dangles questions that aren’t answered. Now, this could certainly be considered a bad thing — and perhaps it is — but in the horror genre, it’s forgivable. We’re allowed to be left with questions. We’re allowed to not get answers. 

When the shift comes, Franco leans in to the horror elements to make the climax really take off. It can be surprisingly brutal. It’s hard to say if Franco is a diehard fan of the genre, or if he just wanted to try something different for his directorial debut. He’s checked in to the vast house of horror, but it may just be a short stay. Either way, he’s found his footing as a director with a horror film that looks great and stands strong above many other genre offerings. 

The Rental is available in select drive-ins, theatres, and On Demand on July 24th. You can check out the trailer and poster below. 

 

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Brad Dourif Says He’s Retiring Except For One Important Role

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Brad Dourif has been doing movies for nearly 50 years. Now it seems he is walking away from the industry at 74 to enjoy his golden years. Except, there is a caveat.

Recently, digital entertainment publication JoBlo’s Tyler Nichols talked to some of the Chucky television series cast members. During the interview, Dourif made an announcement.

“Dourif said that he’s retired from acting,” says Nichols. “The only reason he came back for the show was because of his daughter Fiona and he considers Chucky creator Don Mancini to be family. But for non-Chucky stuff, he considers himself retired.”

Dourif has voiced the possessed doll since 1988 (minus the 2019 reboot). The original movie “Child’s Play” has become such a cult classic it’s at the top of some people’s best chillers of all time. Chucky himself is ingrained in pop culture history much like Frankenstein or Jason Voorhees.

While Dourif may be known for his famous voiceover, he is also an Oscar-nominated actor for his part in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. Another famous horror role is The Gemini Killer in William Peter Blatty’s Exorcist III. And who can forget Betazoid Lon Suder in Star Trek: Voyager?

The good news is that Don Mancini is already pitching a concept for season four of Chucky which might also include a feature-length movie with a series tie-in. So, Although Dourif says he is retiring from the industry, ironically he is Chucky’s friend till the end.

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Editorial

7 Great ‘Scream’ Fan Films & Shorts Worth a Watch

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The Scream franchise is such an iconic series, that many budding filmmakers take inspiration from it and make their own sequels or, at least, build upon the original universe created by screenwriter Kevin Williamson. YouTube is the perfect medium to showcase these talents (and budgets) with fan-made homages with their own personal twists.

The great thing about Ghostface is that he can appear anywhere, in any town, he just needs the signature mask, knife, and unhinged motive. Thanks to Fair Use laws it’s possible to expand upon Wes Craven’s creation by simply getting a group of young adults together and killing them off one by one. Oh, and don’t forget the twist. You’ll notice that Roger Jackson’s famous Ghostface voice is uncanny valley, but you get the gist.

We have gathered five fan films/shorts related to Scream that we thought were pretty good. Although they can’t possibly match the beats of a $33 million blockbuster, they get by on what they have. But who needs money? If you’re talented and motivated anything is possible as proven by these filmmakers who are well on their way to the big leagues.

Take a look at the below films and let us know what you think. And while you’re at it, leave these young filmmakers a thumbs up, or leave them a comment to encourage them to create more films. Besides, where else are you going to see Ghostface vs. a Katana all set to a hip-hop soundtrack?

Scream Live (2023)

Scream Live

Ghostface (2021)

Ghostface

Ghost Face (2023)

Ghost Face

Don’t Scream (2022)

Don’t Scream

Scream: A Fan Film (2023)

Scream: A Fan Film

The Scream (2023)

The Scream

A Scream Fan Film (2023)

A Scream Fan Film
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Another Creepy Spider Movie Hits Shudder This Month

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Good spider films are a theme this year. First, we had Sting and then there was Infested. The former is still in theaters and the latter is coming to Shudder starting April 26.

Infested has been getting some good reviews. People are saying that it’s not only a great creature feature but also a social commentary on racism in France.

According to IMDb: Writer/director Sébastien Vanicek was looking for ideas around the discrimination faced by black and Arab-looking people in France, and that led him to spiders, which are rarely welcome in homes; whenever they’re spotted, they’re swatted. As everyone in the story (people and spiders) is treated like vermin by society, the title came to him naturally.

Shudder has become the gold standard for streaming horror content. Since 2016, the service has been offering fans an expansive library of genre movies. in 2017, they began to stream exclusive content.

Since then Shudder has become a powerhouse in the film festival circuit, buying distribution rights to movies, or just producing some of their own. Just like Netflix, they give a film a short theatrical run before adding it to their library exclusively for subscribers.

Late Night With the Devil is a great example. It was released theatrically on March 22 and will begin streaming on the platform starting April 19.

While not getting the same buzz as Late Night, Infested is a festival favorite and many have said if you suffer from arachnophobia, you might want to take heed before watching it.

Infested

According to the synopsis, our main character, Kalib is turning 30 and dealing with some family issues. “He’s fighting with his sister over an inheritance and has cut ties with his best friend. Fascinated by exotic animals, he finds a venomous spider in a shop and brings it back to his apartment. It only takes a moment for the spider to escape and reproduce, turning the whole building into a dreadful web trap. The only option for Kaleb and his friends is to find a way out and survive.”

The film will be available to watch on Shudder starting April 26.

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