The Ten Steps

I watched this court-métrage in class today and I expected it to be a boring gentle story like what teachers usually choose but I found it thrilling and creepy.

The end just made me wonder « Why is she doing that ? »\ « What made her do that ? »\ What happened ? » I recommend it if you have a little time in the afternoon or even better...at night .

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Irish short horror movie. A family move into an old house, the parents are out for a meal with the father's boss, the teenage daughter stays at home along with her annoying younger brother. There is an electrical power cut, candle in hand she makes her way down the cellar. And that's it, I'm not saying anything else! I knew nothing about this film, all I will say is that the ending is fantastically creepy and proof that when it comes to genuine horror less often means more. The small cast do a good job, the Nokia mobile 'phones used by some characters do date the film but that's not an issue. I recommend watching this just before bedtime with the lights off, happy nightmares! (It has taken me the same time to write this review as it did to watch the film, I will certainly be watching it again,)

Just became available on February 27. Check it out - the slow build up works very well as others have commented, and you'll feel your pulse pick up. Be warned though that the short is very dark and hard to see in places, even if you watch it in full screen mode. However, this does contribute heavily to the mood as you try to see what is going on in all the darkness. The ending really leaves you thinking, like a ghost story from childhood. Good spooky stuff!

The director is apparently working on a full length feature now. There's enough atmosphere and tight grasp of storytelling here to really look forward to what he'll do next.

If film making is an analogy for food then horror movies are the ready meals you stick into a microwave . This probably explains why horror isn't all that well regarded in the cinematic world because any idiot can make a horror movie , all you have to do is stick someone in a remote location and if it's a dark location all the better , have some creepy sounds in the background that will have both the protagonists and audience gasping " what was that ? " and if that's not enough have some scary music . See any idiot can supposedly make a horror movie so why do most directors and screenwriters in the genre come up with movies that clichéd , stupid and most of all not scary in the slightest ?

THE TEN STEPS by writer/director Bredan Muldowney contains every single cliché you have ever seen in every single horror movie . It's set in a remote country house where Katie a young teenager is babysitting on her younger brother Stephen because her parents are networking the father's new boss . There's scenes set in the dark with a mood enhancing soundtrack but within one minute of the running time I'd already jumped out of my skin and as Stephen McKeon's musical score increased the tension I felt my heart beat increase until the shock ending when my jaw hit the floor

I can not praise this short film enough . BBC 2 are having a series of short films on The learning Zone slot and this is the best one they've shown . In fact this is almost certainly the most memorable short film I have ever seen in my entire life . It's brilliantly effective and isn't it obscene that absolute garbage like THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT and THE EXORCIST are hyped while no one has ever heard of THE TEN STEPS ? If I have any criticism it's that this is maybe too effective and I will have a problem sleeping , but apart from that I salute you Brendan Muldowney and I hope that your obvious talent leads to the rewards you deserve

This film is one of many that are included in a collection of short films entitled "Shorts: Volume Four". This and the rest of the films in this series are interesting shorts made mostly but up and coming film makers.

The film starts with a teenager and her younger brother at home alone. It seems their parents are out working on an important business deal over dinner with some clients. However, the kids interrupt the meal twice. The first time is pretty unimportant but the second time the power goes out and it means the teen needs to go into the dreaded dark cellar to fix the fuses--even though she has a phobia about this.

While this film is incredibly simple, they did a great job of creating a creepy and malevolent mood. It ended well for a short, but boy did I wish it had lasted longer--I really wanted to see what would happen next! Good stuff.