Walking Against the Rain

It's a post-apocalyptic world. Blair is a lone survivor trying to salvage for some remaining food. She's avoiding cultists and monsters. She hears a friendly voice on the walkie talkie from stranger Tommy.

The first half is a slow apocalypse. There are no thrills, no action, and no tension. It's a lot of empty banter with a few nuggets of back story. It's slow. Then they show the monster at the midway point and it looks like a rubber Alien suit. The best way to hide the amateur prop is to film it at night. It's almost passable for that one scene. They really need to have an early action scene with the monster. This is strictly a low budget sci-fi indie.

If you're looking for a film that has you invested in the first few minutes this is the film for you. From the amazing mind of writer/director Scott Lyus this is a great film that takes you on a emotional rollercoaster.

The film follows two main characters Blair (Sophia Eleni) & Tommy (Reece Douglas) who are outstanding in their roles, trying to navigate their way across barren land to find each other with nothing but a radio mic to keep them in contact, with batteries running low they have to trust each other to make it through and if that is not enough the whole time they are be tracked by the evil of the shadow in the dark The Forsaken.

From great cinematography to fantastic casting, this is a great film, that shows the strength of humanity in the face of evil. Huge congratulations to Scott Lyus and his cast and crew for a fantastic film.

Blair and Tommy's journey across a desolate landscape in search of one other is a powerful testament to human connection and the lengths we will go to find it. Their struggle to survive in a post-apocalyptic world-fraught with terrifying creatures and the remnants of a fractured humanity-keeps you on edge from start to finish. If you love dystopian stories that explore loss, hope, and resilience with a twist ending, this film is for you. It will surprise you, move you, and deliver plenty of heart-pounding jump scares along the way! Perfect a post-pandemic audience in desperate need of healing and believing in humanity again.

I'm a big fan of character driven movies and the post-apocalyptic genre so this was already ticking the boxes for me.

We start off following Blair - one of (what we presume) very few survivors. We don't really learn much about what happened to the world but I'm okay with that, this isn't a story about how the world ended, it's a story about two people coming together to survive.

Shortly after we get introduced to Tommy as the pair find each other by chance over their radios. They decide to arrange to meet at a location and face this new world together - getting there alive being the biggest obstacle. Their relationship was the only part I felt was a tad rushed and whilst I understand we want to be propelled into the story; I would have loved to have seen them take a bit more time to build trust with each other. HOWEVER, in saying that, I found myself fully routing for them by the end of the movie - give that they're filming on their own for the majority of the film - this was impressive to achieve!

I loved that they decided to use practical effects and given the low budget, did a fantastic job at creating the monsters.

Overall, it's a great indie film that knows exactly what kind of film it is - something I feel first time directors don't always get right but it shows Lyus has a clear vision, story and can write interesting, complex characters. I loved how he focused the story about the characters and their journey, building great tension along the way.

I'm excited to see what he does next.

This character driven monster movie is absolute banger. Funny, scary, tense and properly moving. Had the privilege of seeing this at FrightFest and it was a genuine highlight. Props all round. The performances, direction, writing, score all on point. Can't wait to see what everyone involved does next. Hopefully this gem gets the recognition and widespread acknowledgement it deserves.

Independent cinema is more important than ever and watching films like this make you realise why. The ending is an a belter.

Get on it so can you say you were on board before everyone involved goes big time!

Absolutely lovely stuff!