PopHorror Let's Get Scared
Nicholas Gyeney’s surreal horror film, The Activated Man, premiered recently at Dances With Films Festival. I was fortunate enough to get a chance to check it out recently when PopHorror interviewed the folks behind the film (interview coming soon – stay tuned).
What did I think? Watch the trailer below, then read on to find out!
Synopsis
After Ors Gabriel loses his beloved dog to cancer, the shock from the trauma produces strange vision projections that force Ors to wrestle with two possibilities: That his mind has fractured, or that it’s actually real.
The film stars Jamie Costa and Ivana Rojas and co-stars genre icons, Kane Hodder (Hatchet), Tony Todd (Candyman), and Sean Young (Blade Runner).
Here’s a look at the poster art!
We All Go A Little Mad Sometimes…
One of the first rules of horror films, generally speaking, is: kill as many people as you want, but leave the dog alone. As this is a near-universal truth, it was strange to me to fire up The Activated Man and find out after the opening sequence that the film’s protagonist would be dealing with the traumatic loss of his beloved pet. It’s an interesting take, and a marked stark deviation from the standard hero’s loss of a spouse, child, or sibling.
A recurring theme in The Activated Man is madness. Is the main character cracking up? Is it real? Or is it all a dream? What in the heck is going on with the kid in the opening scene going to the library and opening a book? Is this whole movie a dream? A historical account of a past event? Suffice it to say, there is madness aplenty. I’m not gonna lie. There were more than a few times I found myself asking, “What the f*** is going on here?”
Fortunately, there is help in the form of Jeffrey Bowman (Tony Todd), a psychic/empath type who helps guide our hero on his journey. Standing in their way? The Fedora Man. He’s creepy and he’s everywhere and he’s not going away. But is he real? Or just a figment of the hero’s imagination? The two are on a collision course that entangles the hero’s father (Kane Hodder) and mother (Sean Young) along the way.
What Works
The cast is solid. Jamie Costa and Ivana Rojas are effective in the lead roles as a young couple dealing with trauma and its impact on their relationship. As good as they are, you know when you look at the poster, horror fans are going to be most interested in those big names.
Whether it’s the Friday the 13th franchise, the Hatchet films, or an indie pic like Kill Her Goats (our review), it’s always fun to watch Kane Hodder work. It’s a different kind of role for him, as he’s not wearing a mask, covered in prosthetics, or running around on fire. Hodder plays Ors (Jamie Costa)’s father. The mother in this dysfunctional family is portrayed by Sean Young. She’s a fine actress you don’t get to see enough of these days, so it was cool to see her playing a disturbed character here.
The real standout performance, though, is from the Candyman himself, Tony Todd. I’ve always thought of Tony Todd as a solid actor, but he delivers a truly wonderful, wide-ranging, nuanced performance here. I would be happy listening to him read the phone book, but as the film’s psychic expert, Todd is called upon to narratively carry much of the story. He does it with style and gusto and emotion. Great stuff.
The Fedora Man (Edward Michael Scott) also makes a cool villain. Creepy! He’s like the Undertaker mashed up with Pazuzu.
What Doesn’t Work
Can you have too much of a good thing? Maybe. The Fedora Man is, as I mentioned, super creepy and capable of producing not only jump scares but legit chills as well. The problem? You almost see him too much here. I liken it to Freddy Krueger in the Elm Street films. In the first two movies, Freddy is sinister because he’s lurking in the shadows. The Fedora Man starts like this, and then by the middle of the film, it seems he’s everywhere and in broad daylight to boot. That, sadly, detracted from his effectiveness for me.
The film also feels like it runs a little long at an hour and forty-five minutes. It probably could have benefited from losing 10 or 15 minutes in the editing room. The final act is a bit of a mess. From my perspective, things meander a bit in the second act and it doesn’t all come back together in a completely satisfying way in the third.
The Activated Man – Final Thoughts
The Activated Man is an interesting take on the dream-like descent into madness theme. It’s a little bit A Nightmare On Elm Street, and a little bit of Dreamscape. A lot is going on here, and not all of it makes sense. But maybe that’s the point. You must decide, as I did if that works for you. But whether you approve of it or not, the “madness” mission was accomplished.
It’s a nice-looking film: a polished effort with some nice visual FX and an effective musical score. The cast is solid, the high point, really, and the villain is memorable. For all it has going for it, however, the whole for me did not equal the sum of its parts.
Watch for it on demand and digital platforms soon.
