How to Save Us

The ad campaign for "It Follows" sold us on the fact that it was the so-called best indie film of 2015. I hate to rain on the campaign of the billion dollar Weinstein Company, but you have not seen How to Save Us. Shot for less than 20k, the new film by Jason Trost is something to really brag about. The premise may sound like a done to death very formulaic disaster film but the results is anything but. You have a brother named Brian who is traveling thru a plagued wasteland to find his brother Sam. How to Save Us takes that plot and gives us a twist that goes into both the supernatural and emotional. Brian seems to be one of the very few people left after this mass annihilation by plague. He knows his brother Sam is somewhere in Tasmania which is now being taken over by some kind of ghosts. Now before you start thinking hokey sheets or some done to death Poltergeist, these ghosts are a little bit different than what you would expect which leads to the horror element of the film. We learn early in the film that you have to hide from them like put human ashes on you so the spirits cannot find you or smell you. The spirits have this ability to change them that really adds to the creepy factor.

The most effective is when they take over the radio and warn Brian constantly about Tasmania, or try to manipulate him by giving him voices of his family. The last twenty minutes of this film throws us a huge curve ball that shows a very emotional finale that people will really get freaked out by and also feel for our main character and know why it was so important for him to take this journey to find Sam. Trost showcased his love of trying to change the formula of the normal with All Superheroes Must Die which to me was a very fun film and very underrated. How To Save Us is an early favorite for Film of the Year not only because it changed the normal but also for the simple fact from script to characters to how this film plays out, it is just simply brilliant. In the summer of all the giants, this small indie film is simply one of the best films you will see this summer. I will also say, this is an early contender for film of the year. What a brave statement, Jason Trost has arrived. I am simply blown away and I feel all of you who read this will be as well. Seek this film out immediately. How to Save Us is going to rock your world.

When a really short film drags by, something is definitely wrong. Here we had an original premise and a clever solution to the super micro-budget dilemma: Tasmania evacuated (but not destroyed) and, apparently, overrun by ghosts who you can only occasionally see. One man goes looking for his brother and we cut back and forth between the two of them wandering the empty countryside. I saw where another critic once said "A premise is not a story", and I'll modify that a bit here to say "A premise is not a screenplay". In this case the writer/director, Jason Trost, did have a story he wanted to tell but he simply had know idea how to go about it.

So we have a film which has attractive shots of a lone individual walking, or sitting, but that's literally almost all they do. There's a few potentially chilling scenes that are not chilling, with a small number of minimalist, but effective special effects. Yet the premise is never intelligently developed or believably presented. And to make matters worse, the intrepid writer/director casts himself as one of the leads (with the most lines, but since he's kinda talking to a radio it doesn't really count as dialogue) but the poor chap has less screen presence than a potato and seems about as invested in his performance as an exhausted man waiting for a bus. And by the end we are left to wonder if the whole thing was just a metaphor, because if it's supposed to be happening in reality it missed the mark even further. In the end, a nice looking film, and a promising concept, poorly served and tediously delivered. I don't hate myself for having watched it but I don't hate myself for looking at a bowl of soggy cereal either; yet if you're expecting something tasty, both will prove seriously disappointing, and possibly leave a bad taste in your mouth.

This is by no means a bad Bmovie.

It's very good for what it is, a low budget mystery.

What's with the hating on this film? If you need a reference, it's more Lost than a Walking dead action flick and it relies mostly on little dialogue, scenic shots and suspense which is good because the casts acting talents are a little cringe worthy.

I was oddly drawn in by the story line and the original concept. If you are looking for a high paced scream fest, than this is not for you. If a enticing original story is this is absolutely a very original concept and I can see someone picking this up in the future with a blockbuster high budget, Fassbender featured, remake. Mark my words, I could be very right.

This movie has its a special theme that no character talks each other face to face till the end, all conversation going in either background or recorded on radio. Story about a man who finds his brother at quarantine island of Marina, where unknown ghost are wandering. You only can save yourself from them by drawing a line of ashes. Will he back with his brother ? Find answer after watching this movie. Quarantine feels current lock down situation due to Covid- 19 pandemic.

This movie is very simple; a man goes after his younger brother who is lost in a territory that has been mysteriously quarantined in an area that is desolate. Everything has been abandoned saved for a creature that has been killing humans and leaving their bodies to rot. Brian, our hero is tracking his brother Sam, who has been leaving clues as to whereabouts. These creatures in the area are going after Sam, who has been studying them, tracking them and learning their weaknesses. They are unable to detect you if you are around dead bodies or if you are covered with the remains of the dead (ashes). They are attracted to electricity and they can be seen with infrared. All these creatures nuances have been meticulously detailed in a book and left for Brian by Sam. The story progresses in delightful twists and turns, encapsulating the audience with the frantic chase between hunter and prey.

As for the movie visuals, it was shot against the beautiful backdrop of Austrailia, with familiar landmarks such as the Sydney Opera House. The visuals capture the beautiful layout of the continent and simple shots add so much more to the story and the feeling of emptiness that amplify the story that there are only two beings on the entire continent.

This character driven piece keeps you involved at all times. When you think that the scene will drag, something comes out of the dark and pulls you through an emotional roller coaster for a few seconds, then you are back again. This particular filmmaker is no stranger to making pieces on a low budget with superior casting and storyline and this specific film is no exception to his track record. How To Save Us is a great independent piece and should not be missed!