Medusa
Starring: Jeff Allen, Jorge Ameer
Director: Jorge Ameer
Reviewed by David J. Wing
Much of what we see in Medusa sadly falls short. Whether it be the shockingly bad lead actor, the atrocious sound editing or the severely limited shot designs, the film simply fails across the board. Much of this could have been avoided had the director been able to fund the project better and not found himself cast in far too many roles to manage. Wearing the Director/Executive Producer/Producer/Editor/Actor hats, Jorge Ameer has missed the opportunity most dream of. He has created a feature film on a shoe string. It is a laudable achievement and in some cases, a successful one. Not so on this occasion.
The lead, Jeff Allen, spends most of the film walking back and forth, trying to remember his lines and believing that if he looks intentionally thoughtful, he might fool the audience into thinking he actually attended acting school. The witch doctor, Ameer, is possibly the worst addition to the cast. His over-acting is painful to watch. The special effects are minimal and had there been a budget to speak of, more of it should have gone that way. The cinematography is often locked-off, suggesting the D.O.P. popped to the toilet during takes and we are left wishing for a shot that isn’t in a box sized room or shot in the near dark.
Supernatural genre films tend to work on small budgets because the writer and director understand that they need to pick a style. Ameer forgot. At points I thought we were going the Blair Witch Project route, on others I imagined it going for a touch of The Evil Dead. It all boils down to choice. The director seems to have spent more time producing, and not enough time designing his film.
- Medusa – Movie Review - August 7, 2015
- Carpenter’s Corner: Escape from New York - June 12, 2015
- Carpenter’s Corner: Big Trouble in Little China - April 24, 2015
- Carpenter’s Corner: An Introduction - March 13, 2015
