Review of The Town that Dreaded Sundown (2014) by Quincy T — 28 Jan 2015

Like love on first sight, or murderous rampage for this case, The Town That Dreaded Sundown is impeccably captivating both in eerie night or gleaming daylight. Its visual quality is beyond any ordinary bleak and gritty outlook for horror films. It brings the unusual setting of a town on two states into an integral part of the story. Clever acting from the female lead succeeds in selling the role of a humble girl in terrorizing scenario, not your usual bimbo running in skimpy top.

The retro story is about a town where multiple homicides occurred decades ago. Capitalizing on the story, a movie of the same title was made to highlight the murders and it became a cynical celebration. After years passed the same series of killing starts again. This movie is brilliantly self-aware, using old clips as homage and also tool to heighten the thrill. As the title implies the struggle is that of the city, aside from the main character's, and the movie depicts it very well with impressive veritable shots of the dry town.

I adore the use of lighting here, let it be the simple lights on nightfall, the reflection of sun on the glass or change of color it made to the hair of the characters. Every shot has brilliant angle, the camera moves about any room with stylish deliberate pace. It gives the entirety of human interaction effortlessly as information is presented with poise and without frantic rushing. There are not many environments that can be this believably livable and not appears as just a setting for movie.

The bloody gore is purely effective. There is little to none jittery cam or stale jump scare. Whenever blood pours it flows with impact. Some are seemingly old fashioned but they are delivered with sophistication. Addison Timlin as Jami does a great job as the down-to-earth girl. She has the vibe of innocence that serves better as audience can easily invest to her story and also self-continuity. Script helps the authentic feel as much of the dialogues are deceptively plain yet sentimental. A few twists along the way will captive viewer through the tour of the town.

The Town That Dreaded Sundown bleeds with refinement, this is an amazingly riveting cinematic work.