Proxy

Opening with a shocking sequence, treading an interesting path during the first act, taking an unexpected turn in the middle, dragging from that point onwards and finally drowning in its own mess by the time it nears its conclusion, Proxy may seem like a violent, unflinching, gore-filled horror but in actuality is a dull & bloated psychological horror filled with wooden characters.

The story of Proxy follows two women. First is Esther, a pregnant young lady who loses her child after being brutally attacked by an unidentified person while on her way home. Her road to recovery begins when she joins a support group where she meets & befriends Melanie, who claims that her husband & child died in a road accident. Things head for worse when Esther discovers Melanie's secret.

Co-written, co-produced & directed by Zach Parker, Proxy opens on such a promising note that watching it fall flat after a while was all the more frustrating. The downslide starts when the director decides to shift the focus from one character to another and once that happens, everything after it feels absurd & mundane. Parker also fails to provide a gripping plot or a set of characters worth caring for, and it runs way too long.

There isn't much to talk about its technical aspects for it didn't improve the experience by any means. There are a numerous poor decisions made here as far as camera-work, editing or background score goes. A pivotal scene is turned into an off-putting moment by its slow- mo photography that overstays its welcome & looks unintentionally funny. Editing is virtually absent in the second half. And the background score fails to blend with the narrative.

On an overall scale, Proxy is a highly mediocre horror film that falls utterly short of whatever it was aspiring to be, features weak plotting & questionable character motives, and doesn't even revel in extremity for the R-rated elements are heavily toned down after the gruesome opening act. Neither the cast nor their input stand out here although the actress who plays Esther Woodhouse was slowly getting the hang of her character and I'd have loved to see more of that instead of what Proxy had in store for me. An absolute waste of time!

A-Z Horror Movie of the Day..."Proxy" (NR - 2013 - US)

Sub-Genre: Psycho/Disturb My Score: 6.3

Cast=4 Acting=8 Plot=5 Ending=6 Story=8 Scare=3 Jump=4 F/X=7 Psycho=9 Twist=9

The life of three parents who have all shared the loss of a child. Motives are not what they seem and sanity is in short supply in this thriller.

This movie will make me think twice about joining a support group! What starts with one horrific incident turns into many other horrific incidents. It was like a game of "Psycho Wars"; where only the most deranged may live on for a book signing and a TV movie. This is not scary, but disturbing as hell! This is one to have you shaking your head afterward. Is it weird that I no longer think therapy is a good idea? I didn't think so either.

At first thought, Proxy isn't a horror film because it doesn't concern elements we commonly associate with horror, such as serial killers, demons, and supernatural occurrences. However, it contains the horror elements some of us tragically face as human beings, such as rape, miscarriage, distrust, betrayal, and loneliness in such a way that makes for an experience thriving on fear and uncertainty. I love when films, independent or mainstream, go off on tangents and completely catch me off guard with their intelligence and craft.

We are first greeted with Esther Woodhouse (Alexia Rasmussen), a pregnant woman who, judging by the looks of her stomach, is very close to her due date, emerging from a clinic to only be savagely attacked by a random mugger. She suffers a miscarriage and is left physically deformed, and, due to obtaining the sperm from a sperm bank, has almost nobody to help her through her tragedy. On an off- the-cuff decision, Esther visits a support group for grieving parents, where she meets Melanie Michaels (Alexa Havins), who claims her husband and son were killed. Esther becomes close with Melanie, much to the dismay of Esther's jealous lover Anika Barön (Kristina Klebe).

This is all of the plot I'm willing to give away, for Proxy is one of those films where the line between basic plot summation and spoiler territory is so incredibly thin that another few words added to a sentence could spoil more of the movie experience. It doesn't matter, though, for I'm in the business of opinion and not synopsis. From the moment it kicks off, Proxy is potent and terrifying as a horror film, always engaging the viewer with elements of mystery and character insincerity and keeping them immersed by moving quite frequently and scarcely letting up. In addition, the performances, specifically Rasmussen and Havins, convey a detached and disconnected sense of reality that is almost necessary in a film where the audience is unsure of who is honest, as well as the characters themselves.

On top of that, there is a serious feeling of contempt and loathe that looms over the viewer with every scene, making this a deeper and more investing horror film than I initially imagined. The way the film plays with your emotions by taking numerous social tragedies and lumping together, not for shock, but for the sake of narrative potency and the near-personification of fear is just delightful. Director and co- writer Zack Parker (working alongside writing partner Kevin Donner) take their time to allow slowburn tension to develop, as Proxy occupies a liberally-used two hours, sometimes focusing on conversation, character interest, or events, depending on the current mood of the writers. At two hours, there is ample amount of time to spend on all these aspects, assuring we never get a thoughtful film that races by too quickly to even be analyzed.

Proxy's only issue is that not every performer can make the transition from disconnected to fiery and fuming with anger, most notably Joe Swanberg, one of my favorite directors, who has played low-key for so long perhaps his attempt at sudden rage just feels off-kilter for that reason. There is an understandable mixed reaction to Proxy for more than just its performances, but above all, like many films released under the IFC Midnight label, it's a nasty but thoroughly commendable piece of work illustrating fine- tuned components in a genre that so desperately needs not only some subversiveness but some age-old ideas done correctly rather than haphazardly.

Starring: Alexia Rasmussen, Alexa Havins, Kristina Klebe, and Joe Swanberg. Directed by: Zack Parker.

This film...I really dont get what the purpose was, but really every character in this was a type of person that I am just not fond of at all. Everyone not only had personal problems, but they ended up taking them out on others in such lame and wicked ways. There was nothing redeeming about this film, or worthwhile in terms of lessons learned. Skip at all cost, because even though some of it was so poorly done that my friend and I were laughing at times, at other times we were just shaking our heads at the absurdity and pitifulness of the film. AVOID 4/10

This review contains NO SPOILERS and I suggest you skip the reviews with spoilers until after you see the film.

In my opinion this film is a gem in a sea of gravel. Although it could be more polished it nevertheless retains its value.

The actors performances range from competent to stellar (Alexia Rasmussen was particularly impressive but everyone involved held their own and had their moments to shine) and this is in no small part due to good writing and direction. Cinematography is a similar affair ranging from adequate to mesmerizing. It is certainly a mixed bag but you'd be pressing pretty hard to go so far as to call any of it bad. I personally felt the score was superb and fit the tone of the scenes well.

With the exception of a fairly brutal scene in the first act of the film there really isn't much violence or gore on screen here and what little of it there is was handled tastefully. Visually there is nothing here you won't have seen before. What makes it disturbing is the context, the emotional and psychological mayhem rippling through the characters affected and the cold distance maintained by those less/ unaffected around them. The behavior of the main characters may be extreme but they are the extremes of common conditions.

This is where the film truly shines, as a study of the human condition when emotional needs are not satisfied, the common phenomenon of loneliness and isolation within a dense population and the resulting psychoses. The way empathy is handled in a clinical fashion by professionals and dished out superficially by peers when it suits their agenda, the way people within various relationships, genders (or rather, levels of masculinity or femininity within both genders) as well as how deserving a person may actually be of true empathy anyway are all bouncing off each other here and it's really engrossing to behold if this sort of thing interests you.

I really don't want to spoil anything for any of the viewers for whom this film is intended so I hope it suffices to say that there are "twists" resulting from the nontraditional narrative structure that create an unpredictable thriller spliced with elements of drama/ horror. Every time I made an educated assumption of where things were headed the film surprised me and seemed to revel in doing so until the credits rolled.

If you are the type of person who thinks a character in a film who happens to be of a certain gender or sexual orientation being portrayed as flawed is an accusation directed at everyone in that category or, more importantly, are enduring the loss of a loved one . . . viewer discretion is advised.

I hope this film isn't lost in the horde of mediocre entries in the genre(s). From me this film scores a solid 8/10.