Written by Robert Scocchi | Published
Most horror films actively play on our fear of the unknown, and I can’t think of a film that conjures up feelings of unease quite like 2022. Skinamarink. With almost no dialogue — and even fewer actually centered, well-lit shots — Skinamarink It creates an atmosphere that’s hard to shake, even days after the end credits roll. Inspired by the analog horror movement that is slowly taking over the YouTube scene (Mandela Catalog and Not across the road are the main examples that will ruin your life), Skinamarink It has a similar aesthetic to some of the funky web series floating around, but it has an uncanny ability to hold its own as a feature film.
Now that I think about it, “weird” is the perfect way to describe it Skinamarink.
Skinamarink’s plot is irrelevant
Maybe I’m exaggerating when I say that Skinamarink The plot doesn’t matter much, but I can confidently say that the storytelling isn’t as important as the cinematography.
Writer/director Kyle Edward Ball tells his story through emotions, images, and bumps in the night rather than taking a more traditional approach involving dialogue or folding narratives into any form of exposition. Skinamarink The sense of terror is shown, not told, through random, vague shots of ceilings, off-center images of the interior of a house, minimal dialogue between two frightened children hiding in a house that is slowly morphing into different shapes, and a disembodied voice that tries to manipulate them into doing its bidding by pretending That they are their fathers.
The story of the bare bones
Skinamarink The film revolves around a 4-year-old boy named Kevin (Lucas Paul) and his 6-year-old sister, Kaylee (Dally Rose Tetro). Upon hearing a phone call from their father (Ross Paul), it turns out that Kevin suffered a head injury after falling down the stairs during a sleepwalking episode. The father reassures whoever he is talking to on the phone that Kevin is fine and does not need to go to the hospital.
From this point on, Skinamarink Existing in a liminal space between this world and an unknown place that you probably don’t want to visit anytime soon.
Kevin and Kylie wake up in the middle of the night to strange noises in the house. Deciding it was best to stick together, they ventured downstairs to the family room so they could watch anime together. Brother and sister try to keep calm despite the fact that they know they are not alone – and that someone or something is watching them. Doors disappear and reappear, and Kylie is lured upstairs where both her mother (Jamie Hill) and father speak in vague, monotone voices ordering her to either look under the bed or close her eyes.
Seeking shelter in the basement again, the house is in Skinamarink He continues to play tricks on Kevin and Kylie.
Perspective is everything
Filming was done on a budget of only $15,000 Skinamarink It doesn’t have any fancy special effects. With most of the scenes lit only by a glowing TV screen (according to Paul), and a disproportionate amount of off-center shots that complement the film’s images, I liken the viewing experience to having an attack of sleep paralysis when you dream of a malevolent voice or figure in your room, but you are powerless to act against it . With the metallic taste of sleep lingering in your mouth, you try to shake off the nightmare, but the harder you try to fight it, the harder you fight your fears.
Skinamarink Flow
Its events take place in 1995, Skinamarink It brings up the feelings of being left at home alone with your siblings for the first time while your parents go out to dinner with friends. Suddenly, the refrigerator’s motor took on a life of its own, and you know, it wasn’t actually a refrigerator, but instead an ax murderer trying to get into your house through the crawl space. That glowing red dot in the corner of the entertainment center that you see every day is now a blinking demonic eye whose worldly gaze will not break with you.
While Paul’s directorial debut is certainly open to interpretation, and I have my own thoughts on the film’s ending which I won’t say here to avoid spoilers, the one thing I can tell you for sure is that this is a film that will stay with you for days. .
For its atmosphere alone, Skinamarink It deserves a huge amount of credit for being one of the scariest films I’ve seen in a very long time. If you are willing to experience dream-like horrors Skinamarink What it offers, you can stream the title on Hulu as of this writing.