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Review: The Before Time

imdb tbt posterI was approached about reviewing The Before Time and instantly became excited to watch for two reasons. First, I love the movie poster, which isn’t really that important. And, secondly, I noticed that director Miguel Miller is part of the Supernova Films family and previously executively produced The Vortex, which has since been re-titled Big Bad Bugs. Big Bad Bugs is a SyFy Channel type creature feature, but it does have a high production value especially when considering it as an independent entity. So, going into my viewing of The Before Time, I already knew I was in for a great experience and here’s my thoughts having watched it in full.

The Before Time is written by Scott Bunt based off the story idea from Miguel Miller. Cast members include Jules Hartley (“Silicon Valley”), Danielle Baker (“Made For TV”), Sean Patrick McGowan (“The Outs”), Ted Jonas (“Age of Living Dead”), Julianne Dowler (The Bunnyman Massacre), Phillip Andre Botello (Slay Ride), Danny Arroyo (“Sangre Negra”), Aidan Marus, Megan Hui and Darren O’Lemmets.

“When two rival crews head into the desert to shoot a reality show based on a buried Navajo treasure, they discover that truth is not only stranger than fiction, it’s more dangerous. Something wants them from digging deeper and from escaping the desert alive.”

I have to say that The Before Time was shot as a found footage feature, and that style of film-making is typically not my favorite because I think – in the majority of cases – it’s used by film-makers as a way to be lazy and still finish a project. In The Before Time‘s case, though, I don’t think this particular style was used to be lazy because there were so many different components working together that made this so much more than a group of people who picked up a camera and made a movie. There’s multiple locations used, animal trainers needed, a prop and costume department, special effects and basically every other department can be seen pulling their weight to make this movie awesome. I think The Before Time is actually one of the better found footage films you’re going to find out there right now.

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Also in this case, found footage may have worked in everyone’s favor because there is an extra layer of creepiness that is very reminiscent of The Blair Witch Project. I can even go out on a limb and say The Before Time is The Blair Witch Project for a new generation, one that is set in the desert instead of the woods. Same formula, same mystery, same villain that isn’t always on camera but is always reeking havoc on the characters. The suspense is very high during the night scenes and, again, there’s an extra layer of creepiness present when you feel as if you’re watching real people go through real terror. Shooting The Before Time as found footage also lends itself to the old proverb that sometimes the scariest thing of all is the thing we can’t see. Had it been shot as a narrative, we may have seen more of the antagonists and that would have greatly hurt this film’s story. So, good decisions were made behind-the-scenes.

Honestly, it seems that Native American folklore is often left off of the horror table of elements for some reason, and only one movie dealing with that subject material is released per year. 2015’s big release was Avenged and 2016’s is going to be The Before Time. I prefer the latter of the two titles because The Before Time doesn’t portray Native American ancestors as bloodthirsty savages so much as they’re portrayed as spirits who flourish in darkness, mostly docile but will defend their legacy if provoked. I think that’s more akin to the real life morals that those people have. The Before Time is a good depiction of Native American’s as they appear today as well as a glimpse into their religious beliefs without taking it too far in the supernatural direction. Basically what I’m trying to say here is, yes, The Before Time is a horror film with Native American culture at the forefront, but it’s done in a mostly tasteful way.

Looking at the cast and characters real quick, I feel as if there were a lot of throw away characters who only appeared to add to the modest body count here. The high body count, matched with the multiple locations used, made this more than the average found footage feature. The acting performances, though… I’ll just say… Some were better than others.

Final Score: 8 out of 10.

Film’s available on VOD! Go check it out!

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Michael DeFellipo

(Senior Editor)

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