"What They Say" Review - Written by Anthony T

What They Say
Director: Justin R. Romine
Stars: Heather Doff, Kelsey Zukowski
Studio: Serenity Pictures / Fathead Films
MPAA Rating: Not Rated
Running Time: 16 Mins

"What They Say" is one of those low budgets film that I've been curious about, since hearing about the film. The film recently had it's premiere at the Chicago Horror Film Festival, where the film picked up Best Actress for Heather Doff's performance.

"What They Say" is about a young woman, who is an honor student and has everything going for her. It seems that she has the perfect life, but her pain and anguish starts to haunt her. With her mother and her annoying sister not wanting to help her deal with her demons from the past, the woman begins to be haunted by them. As she become suicidal, will the woman have the strength to fight them off or will it consume her?

One of the things that I liked about "What They Say", it's very dark psychological horror film that gets your interested from the first minute. Director Justin R. Romine does a very good job making the final product work. He does it, by having a very good director of photography that made the imagery and surreal tones work. The film's DP, Nicole Klemens does a very good job making the visual aspects work. She focuses on the dark subjects and tones of the film, by making imagery of the scenes dark and sometime gothic from the main character's perspective. You can see it in every shot, as Klemens draws you into the main characters's world. It makes the main character interesting and makes you become interested in the film's material without being confused or feeling lost.

The other thing that I liked about the production side was that the fact the main peformance was very good. Actress Heather Doff does a very good job with the main character. I liked how, she able to make her character interesting and not dull. For a film like this to succeed, the main performance must be good. Doff does a very good job giving her character a personality that grabs your attention. It's her performance that makes a very good short film, an excellent short film.

The screenplay which was written by Doff and co-star Kelsey Zukowski is a very dark one. One of the things that making the screenplay and the film's story interesting, the fact that it stays on course and focuses on the main character's state of mind. They both do a very good job making everything interesting and not so confusing. The fact that the material feels simple, it doesn't make the material confusing. You also know what’s happening in the film to the point that you begin to feel sorry for the main character. That when you know that the material isn't confusing. The other thing that the writers do very well, they create a story that is character driven. It makes you interested in main character. It's something that you want in a film of this magnitude, as if it focused on other characters than the main character‘s struggles wouldn‘t be as effective.

"What They Say" is a very driven psychological horror film that you should seek, if it’s playing at a film festival near you. The film keeps your interest and has a very good lead performance from Heather Doff.

Review Rating: Five Stars