Director – John Oak Dalton (Scarecrow County)
Starring – Tom Cherry (Grove Lake, Scarecrow County), Joni Durian (Ouija Room, Applecart), and Erin R. Ryan (Slaughterhouse Slumber Party, Alone in the Ghost House)
Release Date – 2018
Rating – 3/5
Tagline – “Some memories of inescapable”
Director, producer, and occasional actor Henrique Couto is a man I’ve followed for some time. He’s directed some of my favorite indie films and a few I didn’t care for. He is also known to produce some extraordinary films as well. Sometime back I was contacted by John Oak Dalton to review his debut film The Girl in the Crawlspace which was produced by Couto. My home internet is trash and I was unable to review from the screening link provided. Some time passed and ITN released the film with Mill Creek Entertainment on DVD. Mill Creek sent it over for me to review. I was skeptical at first because I was not a fan of Dalton’s follow up film Scarecrow County but I still tossed it in and was surprised by how much I liked this film over the other.
**Spoiler Alert** The film follows Jill (Ryan) who was kidnapped and locked in the crawlspace of a serial killer for several years. She finally escapes and, after some time, tries to get reacclimated back into society. The town’s sheriff takes her to visit a psychologist to help her on her way but her struggling marriage is interfering with Jill’s progress. However, this is not the only obstacle in Jill’s path. She still has the serial killer that kidnapped her lurking in the shadows and he’s closer than she thinks. **Spoiler Alert**
I’ll be completely honest and admit that I didn’t expect much from this one. I did not care for Scarecrow County at all and I went into that one expecting to love it. However, I was very surprised by GitCS. It did need some fine tuning in the story department but the overall film was a fun one.
The acting in this one is solid. You can never go wrong with Erin Ryan. She’s gorgeous, talented, and always dedicates herself to her role. The same can be said for Joni Durian. I always look forward to any movie I see these two talented ladies in. Tm Cherry was hit or miss in SC but I really enjoyed his performance in this one. He feels a little more grounded and genuine which worked.
The story for this one has a few holes but nothing devastating to the overall film. I liked following the survivor of a serial killer abduction trying to get her life turned around but the real killer and his reveal was very lackluster. Once he was revealed it made you think back throughout the film where the character was acting and it made no sense. The side story following the married couple and table top role playing was solid. It worked for what it was but I feel like it was never fully explored.
Finally, this is not a bloody mess of a movie like most of you are accompanied to. Instead, this one focuses more on character development and story progression over the red stuff. Overall, The Girl in the Crawlspace is not for everyone. I get that, but I enjoyed it for what it was. The cast was great and the story has some moments. Check it out.
