Michael P. Blevins’ ‘Digging to Death’ (2021) Asks The Question: How Bad Do You Want It? – Movie Review

House hunting can be tiring and endless, but when you find the perfect place, you just want to move in, unpack your boxes, set up the lawn ornaments, and get ready for Halloween. If you’re a regular reader of PopHorror, your home is probably full of horror decorations all year round.

Here’s the plot for the movie, Digging to Death, directed by Michael P. Blevins (Isaac 2021):

David Van Owen buys a fixer-upper house to restore and as he’s digging a hole for a new septic tank, he discovers a large box filled with three million dollars in cash and a dead body. He is faced with the dilemma of reporting the body and losing the money or hiding the money and reburying the body. What unfolds next is a series of consequences that lead us to truly discover what’s buried in the backyard.

Digging To Death has an interesting plot that raises questions in the viewer’s mind: How would we react in David’s place? What would we do next? The power of money can certainly be a dangerous tool when it comes to people.

The movie stars Ford Austin (Westworld TV series) as David Van Owen, and he does a great job playing this average, everyday guy. This isn’t an insult to him or his character, but it helps that he’s believable and we can relate to him. He comes off as the kind of guy who would do the right thing, but sadly, he takes a wrong turn.

I have to say that Michael P. Blevins and the other filmmakers do a great job of keeping the interest up with unsettling parts that will startle many viewers. Digging To Death does have a few scenes that I feel take away the feel of the film, especially when The Corpse (Tom Fitzpatrick: Insidious franchise) interacts with David. The Corpse is not really a terrifying presence, especially since I believe it to be the man’s conscience. It takes away from the threat of the film’s idea, right up until the very end with the final act and there’s no coming back.

Digging To Death is a great film. It could’ve been a short film and still been just as effective. But as a feature length film, we can explore David’s character even more, watching his interactions with his friends, family, and the maintenance guy. We root for him and hope that, in time, he’ll do what’s right. Overall, Digging to Death is enjoyable and worth watching—especially at night—to really get the lonely feel of it.