Movies…with a little bit of obscure culture and sports mixed in
“In July 2017, an experienced outdoor enthusiast vanished in Northern Nevada while on an outdoor excursion. After an extensive search, he was never located. On the three-year anniversary of his […]
“In July 2017, an experienced outdoor enthusiast vanished in Northern Nevada while on an outdoor excursion. After an extensive search, he was never located. On the three-year anniversary of his disappearance, friends and loved ones recall the events leading up to his vanishing, and for the first time, speak about the horrifying conclusion of his fate.”
Director: Dutch Marich
Writers: Dutch Marich
Staring: Suziey Block, Tonya Williams Ogden, Eric Mencis, David Morales, Errol Porter
Release Date: March 27, 2021
IMDB
If you have heard of Horror In The High Desert (2021), then you are just as much as a sicko as I. This fictionalized documentary thriller has five characters, all of which only appear on screen alone. The question & answer format is a rudimentary style, but for what writer and director Dutch Marich set out to do, COVID ended up being reason to make Horror In The High Desert the way he envisioned.
This 80 minute mystery tells the mystery of a Gary Hinge, an adventuring hiker and vlogger who often explores the Great Basin Desert in Nevada. While he is experienced in the art of staying alive in the wild, friends and family of Gary get nervous when he never arrives home from a rather lengthy expedition. Gary’s roommate Simon alerts Gary’s sister Beverly, who in turn notifies the police.
From there the mystery picks up with the police trying to locate Gary in the vast wilderness. There are clues along the way, like Gary’s truck being found out in the middle of a random road with barefooted prints around it. However, even with the aid of private investigator William Salerno, answers are not coming quickly. A local news reporter by the name of Gal Roberts is also piecing all the clues together while being the audience avatar, but the final framework of the puzzle is still not in sight.
The outside pieces regarding the mystery of Gary’s disappearance become illuminated when it is discovered that Gary had a secret blog with 50,000 followers that he posted videos to. How did none of Gary’s closest acquaintances not know about this? Let’s just move on from that.
On this blog it is discovered that Gary found a very remote home in the Great Basin Desert. This home emitted an aura that spooked the hell out of Gary, but because his followers wanted proof of what he says he saw, Gary convinced himself to return to the odor filled danger zone. Shadowed in darkness, Gary gets closer to the house where he gets tangible proof that this home is occupied, and its occupant is not happy to have him around.
Weeks go by without any developments of Gary’s whereabouts, until randomly two hikers in the county find a backpack. Within this backpack are the final moments of Gary’s life captured in vivid standard definition camcorder footage. The truth eliminates all of the theories and folktales that Gary’s followers told themselves regarding what really happened, but the truth may be stranger than any reddit theory.
The most important thing to realize is that Horror In The High Desert is an independent movie. It is made low-budget, and it is not shy about it. Compared to movies like Backtrace (2018), which attempted to be more than its realistic expectations, Horror In The High Desert knows exactly what it is. It is easier for a horror or thriller movie to hide their lack of money within the genre. You throw in some spooky music and you can make some people nervous, like myself.
And why did I reference Backtrace? It’s because I just saw it. My quest to watch all Sylvester Stallone movies, no matter how bad they are.
Visually Horror In The High Desert doesn’t make any history books, and that is due in large part to all the scenes with the actors being filmed solo, alone, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. None of the actors appear in a scene together. It is all through the POV of interviews, and the settings of the interview change from time-to-time. If I were a betting man I would say that everyone recited all of their lines in all three spots they spotted up with the limited cast and crew. It was a post production process to make sure the continuity works.
With no one to act against, the limited cast have both a limited but challengingly isolated task. The most important aspect of all the performances is that each one is slightly over-the-top in one way, shape, or form. The character Beverly is whiny, and really, really annoying. WIth the road bumps she threw in the police, you can see how her attitude would be exacerbating. The most hilarious performance is David Morales as private investigator William ‘Bill’ Salerno. The way he is framed and the way he talks is so mysterious its hilarious. There are extra shadows thrown on his face and the way he talks give off 1950s noir vibes. It’s so funny. It is comic relief every time he pops on, whether it be intentional or not.
I want to reiterate that Horror In The High Desert is not “good” on the normal spectrum. But on the “why not, let’s just give it a try” spectrum, the movie rises above most of the forgettable fog. And if you choose to watch Horror In The High Desert, I am happy to report that there is a sequel. Horror in the High Desert 2: Minerva (2023) came out in March, and I will be adding it to my queue for the next time I want a background movie while writing.
STANKO RATING: C+
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