All Eyes

For a low budget movie All Eyes isn't that bad. At least not as bad as some reviewers stated here. The story wasn't boring and the acting from the small cast wasn't bad either. Maybe they should have shown the monster a bit more to make it more entertaining. That's what I would have done. Maybe the budget was too low for that, but the idea was there. I've seen hundreds of worse movies than this one in this genre so I wouldn't pay too much attention to the reviews rating it as the worst movie they ever watched. Just don't expect an award winning movie or something that will blow your mind away but just some easy entertainment, that's all it is.

It's a small movie, for sure. But I really liked it. The nicest aspect is its originality. You haven't seen this story before, it's not a rehashing of two dozen movies you've seen before. It can be read as a metaphor of human pain and loss, but you are trapped by the narrative from start to finish. It's a nice small flick!

At the moment I'm writing this review, it is scored 5.4. It pretty much reflect what it does worth. I personally put a solid 6 on it. I found it entertaining and fun. Don't think you'll get great special effects, here, people flying all over the place, explosions, explicit gore, Godzilla-like creatures crushing cities, etc. Yet, it's well shot, the photography is nice with deep colors, it is well played through and through, and at the risk of revealing too much, you have a decent mix of heartfelt moments and action. A very decent film.

For reference, I score 6 for entertaining; 5 for entertaining with reservations; 7 for VERY entertaining movies.

This is very different and much better than I had expected. The monster is sort of a McGuffin for the story of two damaged men.

The two principal characters are well-written and well-acted. The plot keeps the audience off-balance and unsure whether to laugh or recoil. I really couldn't predict where it was going, unlike most low-budget horror.

Criticisms: The writers didn't seem to know how to end the story, so it kind of limps along too long after the denouement. There is really only one secondary character, the podcast producer, and her acting is very weak. But the focus is on the two main characters, which are great.

A podcaster makes an oopsie on his fairly successful podcast show during a live event, and loses his sponsorship and job. To reclaim his fame and followers, he ventures out to bum-eff Oklahoma to meet an eccentric, ultra-paranoid hermit who claims to have a monster in his backyard.

It's very similar to "Digging Up the Marrow." Story is, documenters interview man who swears monsters are real. Interviewers get more than they bargained for when they realize the erratic person they are interviewing may be right. Things get interesting. This kind of story plot is a bit unfamiliar, and has only been growing since the last decade. While "All Eyes" isn't groundbreaking in any way, it's well worth a watch, especially by those who are at the very least not bothered by indie films. Still, one of these days we'll get the "Blair Witch Project" version of this type of story, which will blow audiences away and go viral. But so far, "Man interviews wackjob nut about the supernatural and audiences share his shock and fear when realization sets in that said wackjob might be right" hasn't quite yet found its shining star.

The editing was pretty good, but the most clever editing was used to amplify comedic effect. The humor in the movie was both a joy and a crutch. It seemed to focus too much of being "funny," and while it usually generated a chuckle or even a good laugh, it felt like it wanted to be more a comedy than anything else, which was a tad disappointing.

Definitely has the "indie film" vibe. But this is yet another modern horror/suspense film that proves indie films have come a long way, and anybody can make a decent movie with a few bucks, a camera or two, and a small film crew. The special effects even become laughable at a point. Some of the directing and cinematography is shaky, and questionable. It almost feels too much like "Home Alone," and not just in the way of booby traps. One scene reminds me of "Home Alone" when Joe Pesci's characters just stands there for a few good seconds while a blowtorch is scorching his head. It's kinda weird like that at times. And what was with the random zoom on the keys? Some effects are really tacky too. Like the orchestra during some "intense" moments, which made it feel too much like a B movie, like something from Troma films, or something from the early days of Peter Jackson.

Acting is amateur at best. And yes, so is the dialogue. But it's really not all that bad, one has to admire the simplicity of it all. It's not particularly scary, but it does have some good creepy moments. Story is really basic too. I liked Don from the very beginning. He's a blunt, honest backwoods type, and kinda hilarious and aggravating at the same time.

There's an interesting part of the plot dealing with lights and booby traps, and as a result, things really pick up about 2/3 of the way through. The film misses its mark with being an effective suspenseful movie, but it still has a lot of charm and unique traits to make it enjoyable.

If you like supporting independent films, and enjoy quirky slow-burners with some cheesy effects, but a decent and interesting plot, I'd recommend this film. And I wish the filmmakers and actors all the best in their future projects.

All Eyes (2022) is currently available on Tubi and comes highly recommended by Edward Delgado. The storyline follows a podcaster who decides to interview an eccentric old man who claims to have a monster on his farm. Is the old man crazy or is he telling the truth? The podcaster is about to find out the hard way.

This movie is directed by Todd Greenlee (Home with a View of the Monster) and stars Jasper Hammer (Lucky), Ben Hall (Minari), Danielle Evon Ploeger (The Pale Door), Nick Ballard (The Stunt Double) and Laurie Cummings (What Josiah Saw).

Hammer and Hall are really good in this. They reminded me a little bit of Bacon and Ward in Tremors. They had great chemistry and back forth through various conversations and circumstances. It does take a little while for this to get going as the first action/kill sequence isn't until there's about 35 minutes left in the movie...but that scene is awesome and catches you completely off guard. It's one of those movies that's super slow and then goes to a sprint out of nowhere. Everything that happens in the house at the end is tremendous and you find yourself thinking, "if it was me what would I do?" There's definitely some surprising, unforeseen circumstances that keep your attention and the movie well paced. The ending was smart and fairly clever in terms of how everything is positioned.

Overall, this isn't a masterpiece but it has enough unique elements and worthwhile characters to make it worth a watch. I would score this a solid 6/10 and recommend seeing it once.