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Girl in Woods
USA 2016
produced by Mark Williams, Whit Greenway (executive), K.C. Lim (executive), Dawn Clark (executive), Jeremy Benson (executive) for GIW, Yield Entertainment
directed by Jeremy Benson
starring Juliet Reeves (= Juliet Reeves London), Charisma Carpenter, Jeremy London, John Still, Lee Perkins, Shaun Benson, Lauren Bayleigh White, Rezia Massey, Ross Williams, Alissa Heere, Amanda Murphy
written by Jeremy Benson, music by Kevin Croxton, special makeup effects by Duane P. Craig, Tim Richards, visual effects by Anthony Kramer
review by Mike Haberfelner
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Grace (Juliet Reeves) is a troubled woman, suffering from nightmares
ever since the day she has seen her father (Lee Perkins) commit suicide,
and the influence her mother (Charisma Carpenter) has on her to this day
seems to be a bit worrying in itself - but all of this shouldn't matter
today, as her boyfriend Jim (Jeremy London) takes her deep into the woods
to propose to her at one of the most romantic spots in the area ... and
then a shot is fired from God-knows-where (it could be from his own gun)
and he ends up dead. Grace is in shock (and who wouldn't be), and her
first instincts are all wrong, so for some reason she buries (or rather
hides) the body instead of going to look for help, she loses everything
that might help her get out of the woods or even ensure her survival, and
ultimately she wrecks one of her hands, and two aspects of her
personality, the Angel and Devil, Jekyll
and Hyde, or, if you're psychoanalytically inclined, super-ego
and id, appear to her to advise her - but unfortunately, neither is
infallible. Things turn from bad to worse when Grace realizes a demon's
after her, and she has to kill it to survive - even if that means
surviving on his flesh. Thing is, Grace hasn't been quite herself for
years now, and with the death of her boyfriend, her perception has become
totally warped and nothing might be what it seems - including her very own
past ... Girl in Woods is a rather clever little
thriller, as it only seemingly follows the genre formula to play with the
audience's perception (much as the protagonist's perception is warped,
actually), to ultimately turn what's good and evil on its head. But Girl
in Woods is more than just clever, it's good as well as it doesn't get
lost in its own cleverness, instead tells its story in a rather engaging
way, stays sympathetic with its main character to the end, and doesn't try
to hammer home its punchline, instead serves it elegantly. And fetching
scenery, subtle direction, and a strong central performance all help to
make this a quite cool genre gem!
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