The Gallows (2015) Movie Review

The Gallows gives focus on storytelling

Director:  Travis Cluff and Chris Lofing

Starring: Reese Mishler, Pfeifer Brown, Ryan Shoos, Cassidy Gifford

Studio: New Line Cinema, Blumhouse Productions, Management 360, Tremendum Pictures

Distributed by: Warner Bros.

Release Date: June 30, 2015(Fresno premiere)

July 10, 2015(United States)

Plot: 20 years after a horrific accident that killed an actor during a small town school play, students at the school resurrect the failed show in a misguided attempt to honor the anniversary of the tragedy - but soon they discover that some things are better left alone.

Okay. So from the trailers itself of the film, we already know what was coming to us. Yes, I know what your reaction would be. It’s just another found-footage film, complete with the same shaky cam cinematography and all that stuff. Well, you’re right. That’s exactly what this film is.

But aside from that, it’s a bit more than what we think of. And I’m so relieved because it’s not like the tons of found-footage films that we’ve seen before (and have already forgotten). Here’s my review for the found footage horror film The Gallows’.

Great Characters

Unlike most found footage films where we get mostly cardboard characters, here we get some real teenagers going through the real life situations that most teens go through. Although one of these characters is really an asshole, the rest are just like the regular teenagers that you at school. This actually helps the film to be more realistic in nature.

It’s a good thing that the actors that portray these characters were so good at it that we really believe like they’re the real thing.

From left to right: Pfeifer Brown, Cassidy Gifford, and Reese Mishler

I must say that Reese Mishler and Pfeifer Brown did a really great job of playing their characters. I really loved Pfeifer Brown during the last minutes of the film. I also want to commend Ryan Shoos as the best friend who gives Reese that stupid idea that started all of it and Gifford as his noisy girl friend . The two of them really make a good pair with all the cat and dog fights which we usually see in teenage couples everywhere. Overall, I think the the whole team did a really awesome job in their cast.

A lot of action takes place through Night-vision cameras.

Oooh... The Colors
One thing that made me fall in love for this film and really got me to watch it in theatres was the trailer. I mean, that was one of the best trailers for a horror film I've seen this year (next to Guillermo Del Toro's Crimson Peak) The trailer and the film itself features a really weird combination of color palettes: from red to green. It has a lot of scenes in night-vision which made it more interesting. This actually reminded me of Dario Argento's Suspiria. Both films features a weird mix of colors and lights which added to the surreal quality of it.
Also, the soundtrack in the trailer was a really good choice.

Take a bow.

Generic Haunted School Story Gets a Twist

If you watched the trailer, you would think that it’s the usual haunted school teen horror flick that you’ve seen a dozen of times. And the first hour of watching it, that’s exactly how you will perceive the movie to be.

But then, halfway through the film, a big twist in the story changes everything. Somehow, it was not just simple coincidence. Every event that has led to this were planned. And this is what I’ve loved in the film. It’s not like the random found footage film that has a generic story and then just stays right there. No, this one wants to be something else aside from that. It wants to be different from the hordes of horrible direct-to-video found footage flick that came before it. It wants to be great. And when it comes to it’s story, it succeeds in that goal. Because that twist alone was worth the minutes of watching this creepy piece of a gem.

Ryan Shoos as...well, himself.

Scares, uhm… Not quite

We’ll, the only problem here lies on one of the main aspects of a horror film: the scares. The film pretty much tries to throw in some scares here and there during the first half of the film. At least one of them was effective and the rest was just lame. This made the first part of the film a bit of a drag since it focused too much on introducing these characters to us.

Luckily, during the latter half of the film, the scares becomes more frequent and more imaginative, and most of them were really effective. At least, it was able to redeem itself during the last part.

Final Verdict: Although it doesn’t really shake up the whole genre in it’s existence, The Gallows is pretty much a decent horror film for fans who are craving for a good horror movie with a really good story too. I mean, the twist in this film was just so unexpected. I didn’t see it all coming. And it was one hell of a show indeed.

I am rating this film 4 out of 5 stars.

              
               The Gallows - Trailer #2 (2015) by inthefame