The Strange Thing About the Johnsons

This is a very good first impression from recently acclaimed new director, Ari Aster. I would call him a horror director, however, based off the core nature of his films and some things Aster has said himself including things like he didn't intentionally set out to make a horror film from the start with "Hereditary". Ari Aster crafts heavy, haunting, and personal dramas that have a way of creating their very own unique atmosphere. An atmosphere usually filled with gut wrenching terror. "The Strange Thing About the Johnsons" is just that. This is Aster's most genre film as it feels almost 100% a drama. It is reminiscent of another anthology drama/horror called "Family Portraits" they are both very disturbing in their nature. "The Strange Thing" is the story about a suburban family that where the father and son share a dark secret. The story is very engaging as it is subject matter most of us have not seen portrayed in film before. This movie also kind of reminds me of Trey Edward Shults first film "Krisha". Overall a nice little short film to watch for fans of "Hereditary" and "Midsommar"

If you saw Hereditary or Midsommar or both, well here's where the director started and boy is it messed up! The 30 minute film is very well done but the concept will boggle your mind. This film is DEFINITELY not for everyone. It is an interesting perspective that I have never seen on film before but be warned it is quite disturbing. Fortunately for me, I am a big fan of disturbing films. If you are not, you should probably avoid this one.

Let's be real here... Short films don't really have a place in the world in terms of global mass media. They are usually only seen by film-aholics or by people involved in the film arena (directors, producers, cinematographers, film critics, film students & professors, etc.) Ask any 'normal person' who doesn't know who David Lynch is, or doesn't have a strong opinion on the films of Hitchcock, if they can name just ONE short film... And I'd bet a million bucks they can't. name. one. My point is...

The Strange Thing About the Johnsons defies this rule.

The Strange Thing About the Johnsons is the only short film I've ever seen that I can show someone who isn't a 'film person' and they are completely engaged from the very first scene, to the very end, every - single - time. It's the ONLY short film that - MULTIPLE TIMES - I have told people about in a living room, and they become so enticed, we whip it out on someone's computer screen, and in the midst of a large hang out session, 9 people are so completely transfixed for nearly 30 minutes, and ALWAYS walk away with a strong visceral reaction.

Ari Aster is a Great director who understand precisely what makes the world wide audience sit on the edge of their seats. The original soundtrack by Brendan Eder is unforgettable in its use of beauty over the sadistic nature of the characters. Billy Mayo delivers a indelible disturbing performance with unnerving authenticity.

In 20 years, The Strange Thing About the Johnsons will STILL be one of the only short films you can sit a big group of people -- (the kind of people who've never been to a film festival in their life, aka 98% of all world movie watchers) -- a big group of people down in a living room and play, and NO ONE will pull out their phones from boredom. It is, without a doubt, if there ever was such a thing...

A short film masterpiece.

The Strange Thing About the Johnsons is the short submitted by Ari Aster for his thesis, this before he established himself as one of the most talented directors in the contemporary horror film scene. Indeed, one of the most compelling things about the film is to note how several of the elements that made his best-known films outstanding were already part of his poetics from the very beginning. Among them, the propensity to tackle really taboo subjects, so much so that the idea must have been frowned upon in a politically correct university, such as AFI. So yes, Ari Aster's university professors most certainly hated him.

While acerbic, Aster did as good a job with the small budget at his disposal as in handling the theme. For example, you can see how the gimmick of one of the most iconic sequences in Hereditary began to develop in this very movie (where it is used due to the actual practical impossibility of shooting a certain scene). Some lines of writing are really sophisticated, as is the attention to the emotional reaction to the traumas of the different characters, and all the actors involved were perfect in their parts.

I was amazed at this movie! It was not at all what I expected it to be. The production values, cinematography, acting, writing, directing, and editing were absolutely phenomenal. Most of the other reviewers here have given it a low rating due to how uneasy the subject material made them. One even goes so far as to say "the content of this project is not only disgusting, but implausible and completely ridiculous." However the very next line in the review is "I know these things actually happen," So how can something be both implausible and ridiculous, yet actually happen? This movie is great. It is thought provoking and I think does a good good of presenting an often uncontemplated take on the dark motifs the movie explores. It is designed to make the audience uncomfortable so that, hopefully, they will talk about what they have just watched. My hat goes off to the filmmaker and all those involved for creating a truly unique and visionary piece of cinema.