A CREATURE WAS STIRRING (2023)
Label: Well Go USA
Region Code: A
Rating: R
Duration: 95 Minutes 32 Seconds
Audio: English DTS-HD MA 5.1 Surround, Dolby Digital 2.0 Stere0 with Optional English Subtitles
Video: 1080p HD Widescreen
Director: Damien LeVeck
Cast: Chrissy Metz, Annalise Basso, Scout Taylor-Compton
In the winterboud horror-thriller A Creature Was Stirring (2023) uninvited strangers Liz (Scout Taylor-Compton, Rob Zombie's Halloween 1&II) and Kory (Connor Paolo, Stake Land, Stake Land II) break into a home to take shelter during a wicked blizzard, unaware that it's currently occupied. The homeowner Faith (Chrissy Metz, TV's This Is Us) is none to pleased by the unwelcome intrusion and goes after them with a spiked-bat, gruesomely injuring Kory's leg in the process, but instead of tossing the invading siblings back into the sub-zero blizzard she feels some guilt about the frackas, and begrudgingly allows them to stay until the storm blows over, which the strangers might soon regret.
Cast: Chrissy Metz, Annalise Basso, Scout Taylor-Compton
In the winterboud horror-thriller A Creature Was Stirring (2023) uninvited strangers Liz (Scout Taylor-Compton, Rob Zombie's Halloween 1&II) and Kory (Connor Paolo, Stake Land, Stake Land II) break into a home to take shelter during a wicked blizzard, unaware that it's currently occupied. The homeowner Faith (Chrissy Metz, TV's This Is Us) is none to pleased by the unwelcome intrusion and goes after them with a spiked-bat, gruesomely injuring Kory's leg in the process, but instead of tossing the invading siblings back into the sub-zero blizzard she feels some guilt about the frackas, and begrudgingly allows them to stay until the storm blows over, which the strangers might soon regret.
The intruding siblings, who turn out to be wandering Christian missionaries, discover that Faith has a teen daughter Charm (Annalise Basso, TV's Snowpiercer) whom she keeps locked-up inside a bedroom with a locked steel door, explaining that she has some sort of affliction that requires her to be secured in the room. Faith, a nurse, treats her daughter with a regimen of homemade drugs she concocts in her makeshift bedroom laboratory, subjecting her daughter to regular rectal-temperature checks. The strange situation strikes the sibling as quite odd, and potentially harmful, but when Charm's temperature spikes and she begins to transforms into spiky were-porcupine the mystery deepens and it seems that these travelling siblings may have broken into the wrong house.
Shot in a comic book style that is infused with eye-singing colored lighting, which brought to mind Red Christmas or Christmas Bloody Christmas, with some interesting lensing by Alexander Chinnicith (V/H/S/99, V/H/S/85) this low-budget psychological creature-feature, which sort of has a Christmas vibe about it, has a striking look, you can tell it's low-budget but it looks solid in that respect. The were-porcupine creature(s) look great as well, the transformations are well-done with black goo and melty transitions that are pretty gross, and the finished spiky design is something quite unique. Another strong suite is the cast, the four actors here are committed to the material, Metz and Basso are especially strong, their strained and enigmatic mother-daughter relationship gives us plenty of dramatic tension to chew on.
There's quite a bit I liked about A Creature Was Stirring, the mystery surrounding Charm and her monstrous affliction is pretty interesting, there's lots of intriguing mystery afoot and some nice tension that revolves around religious beliefs, issues of drug addiction and familiar abuse, and once the creature-feature action starts up proper I was delighted, plus it delivers some claustrophobic frights, a snow-tunnel scene stands out for sure. However, it's also a bit of an unwieldy and flawed beast, there's an oddball infusion of humor that includes a sequence involving Kory dressed as DC's Green Lantern that had me scratching by head, and oddball character choices just seem odd, thought he finale does help explain some of those peccadillos. It's the film's final sprint that leads the revelation of an unreliable narrative, which is so out-of-left field it might make your head spin right off your neck, a late in the game twist that to be felt so unearned that that it might threaten to derail the goodwill the creature-feature flick might have built up for some. It didn't tank the movie for me, I dig a big-swing and this scrappy creature-feature is swinging for the fences, and I am here for it, flaws and all. It's an entertaining watch, not perfect, plenty flawed, but interesting, and I am a sucker for good practical creature-feature make-up effects, and this one has a doozy of a creature.
Audio/Video: A Creature Was Stirring (2023) arrives on Blu-ray from Well Go USA in 1080p HD widescreen and it looks solid throughout with crisp details and vivid colors. Audio comes by way of English DTS-HD MA with optional English subtitles, the track sounds great, immersive and dynamic and in all the right places.
Sadly, the only extras on this release are a selection of Well Go USA Trailers, that's too bad, I would have loved a commentary from the screenwriter and director discussing the themes and execution of the flick on this one. The single disc release arrives in a standard keepcase with a Single-Sided Wrap and a Slipcover.
Special Features:
- Well Go USA Trailers
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