Certainly, the fact that comedians are turning to horror is nothing new. Jordan Peele has had his skeptics, but now he is one of the best-known and most highly regarded horror directors of our time. Now, Joe Lo Truglio takes a leap into the realm of horror movies with his first directorial feature film Outpost (2020). Can we believe Charles Boyle, a sweet, innocent and lovable character from Brooklyn Nine-Nine could ever direct his own horror movie? But he did it anyway, so while Outpost may not be equal to Get Out Peele’s shockingly brilliant debut directorial effort it still is an awfully good fright night experience leaving us wanting more from this comedic actor.
Lo Truglio’s strong storytelling abilities make Outpost an impressive debut for a director. How tension develops in it is perfect and Lo Truglio’s game with her mind and ours deserves approval. However, there are moments when things slow down a bit in Outpost as well as having third act that can only be described as bonkers but these drawbacks hardly take away from its otherwise engaging indie horror flicks.
Outpost tells a story about Kate (Beth Dover), an abused woman who turns to her best friend Nicki (Ta’Rea Campbell) for help in order to start afresh after her traumatic relationship. Kate finally finds some peace and quietness when she gets hired by Nicki’s brother Earl (Ato Essandoh) as a fire lookout in Northern Idaho mountains. Unfortunately, it does not take long before Kate’s past begins catching up with her hauntingly and forces her to face her demons due to her geographical isolation.
The timing jokes of racist comedians seems right at home here; where have I heard this before/and Joe Lo Truglio is no exception! Upon watching Outpost it becomes apparent that among the ranks of Jordan Peele, Kevin Smith or Zach Cregger, Joe Lo Truglio is a very good comedians who turned to directing a horror. I think that this immediately gives an audience an increased feeling of anxiety while it is setting. Abuse is a very touchy subject and instead of forcing viewers to watch an abuse scene, Outpost focuses more on the PTSD and psychological trauma that comes with it.
Joe Lo Truglio has excellent horror direction skills. His suspense building for the audience pays off in satisfying and frightening ways as well as some really gory visuals. The narrative’s unfolding exemplifies Lo Truglio’s writing even if some dialogue may seem cheesy at times and occasionally questionable – Outposts strong story, delicate themeing make up for it.
Lo Truglio’s wife these days known for her comedy roles Beth Dover gives a stellar performance in her debut horror film. Beth Dover digs deep into Kate’s psyche and trauma to give us one seriously badass yet wholly broken character who simply falls down the spiral of madness. Along with Dover, Ato Essandoh, Dylan Baker and Dallas Roberts all turn out equally stunning performances of equal impact that cannot be ignored.
In the first few minutes, Lo Truglio has its audience in Beth’s mind and teases us with one of humanity’s worst fears —a room full of people staring at you. This is an hallucination of course but as the movie goes on, it only gets nuttier and bloodier.
Speaking of these hallucinations, they make for great scenes that keep viewers glued to their seats all through the movie. Towards the end of the film, a few shocking plot twists and some pretty eerie scenes are featured which will lead audiences into grappling with reality just like Kate. However, things do slow down somewhat at some point in the film but it won’t take long before hallucinations and traumatic visions will rattle back into place.
Overall though Outpost is a little bit slow burnish type of a movie that slowly sees Kate descend into madness. For instance, Kate is shown by Lo Truglio as losing touch with reality thereby keeping audiences engaged throughout.
Still, third act quickly transitions between gears within this movie and casts the characters in a completely different light altogether. After that point, violence erupts throughout with fast pace and utter mania. Unfortunately for others however, this change in speed might feel disorienting especially if watching for the first time. Yet once this begins to reach its climax during the third act; there are many who will simply sit back and watch all hell break loose.
Watch free movies on Fmovies
