Halloween season is the official home of horror anthologies, so the film festival roll-out of Mass Grave Pictures’ DARK TALES FROM CHANNEL X is rather timely. In collaboration with Reel Prophecy Pictures and Open Iris Entertainment, the long-awaited motion picture is seeing a handful of screenings in the coming weeks; including the Imagine This Women’s International Film Festival (which begins tomorrow!), Macabre Faire Film Festival on October 2nd, Tiny Terror Convention on October 2nd and New Jersey’s Highlands Horror Film Festival on October 9th. If you happen to be attending any of these events, here’s why you should pop in for a screening of DARK TALES FROM CHANNEL X. This anthology flick harkens back to a better time in horror with suspense, practical effects, a spooky, smoky atmosphere, and originality and ingenuity. It was made for those who grew up watching titles like CREEPSHOW and THE TWILIGHT ZONE. It’s the perfect way to get your Halloween season started on the right foot!
Starring Michelle Nunez, Angie Hansen, Diana Porter, Sarah Schoofs, Kathryn Lill, Mike Roche, Frank Joseph, Victoria Clare and many more, DARK TALES FROM CHANNEL X finds a young woman on a house-sitting gig who discovers an old black-and-white television. When she attempts to switch channels, she discovers a creepy television host named The Viewer, who entices her to watch his static-y broadcast with a host of scary stories. SLEEPLESS – a potential ode to sleep paralysis. Quick fixes THE AU PAIR and KNOCK KNOCK. M IS FOR MASTECTOMY – the studio’s ABC’s of Horror submission. Creature feature BENEATH and realistic stalker nightmare I WAITED FOR YOU. And a Halloween party to die for with MATRYOSKA. Besides the wrap-around story CHANNEL X and M IS FOR MASTECTOMY, I’ve seen all the segments included within throughout the years. However, it’s also worth noting that I review (or used to review…) hundreds of titles a year. And as soon as each piece of the puzzle started, I thought “Oh, I remember you!”
DARK TALES FROM CHANNEL X was written and directed by Manny Serrano and Lindsay Serrano. It was also edited by Mr. Serrano, and features cinematography by Philip Kral and effects by David Gechman – depending on which short film you watch. One of the things I love about this anthology is that it feels like an independent feature. If this was brought to life by Hollywood, I feel as if it would have lost its true essence. Horror shouldn’t look shiny and perfect. Horror needs to be imperfect and grungy and boasted only by storytelling and mood. Horror needs to be nods to fears that hide in your subconscious as well as the fears of every day life in the real world. Many of the the segments in DARK TALES FROM CHANNEL X are realistic in their depiction of crumbling humanity and the pressures of ignoring the supernatural. Is it completely polished? No. But I was able to ignore any productional mishaps because I was transported to another world where the walls were falling in on me. DARK TALES FROM CHANNEL X is an experience more than it is a motion picture and it’s absolutely wild.
I will say, however, that it is extremely back-loaded. The deeper you get into this feature, the more gratification you will receive. The final three segments were my absolute favorites in this order – BENEATH, MATRYOSHKA and I WAITED FOR YOU. So, I urge you to wait until the end before passing judgement on this movie. After being in various states of production for over five years, I’m glad that Mass Grave Pictures accomplished an anthology flick that’s so good. I have no doubts that it will get picked up by a distributor at some point. Its road to success as an indie flick may have been painted with obstacles and time delays (Thanks, COVID!), but the pay-off is going to be so worth it. I was privy to seeing most of the shorts as they were finalized, and I was still blown away by DARK TALES FROM CHANNEL X during my second viewing. The Viewer took me on a dark and disturbing journey, but it was a journey that I’d be happy to go on a third time. Look for this title at a film festival near you soon! I promise it will be worth your time.
Final Score: 9 out of 10.
