PANDAMONIUM BY DINA MCNEIL
Directed by Dina Mcneil
We all know the saying – “What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas”.
While most of us have no reason to be concerned, a few sure would love to get the opportunity to forget all about it. That is unless the mistake you made shows up on your doorstep…
‘Pandamonium’ is a fun short thriller that deals with the repercussions of marrying under the influence.Doug, a likeable single dad, has one drink too many and decides to marry a palm reader he just met in an Elvis chapel in Vegas. Sober again, he’s forced to tell his kids what he’s done and face their anger. While the older daughter berates him, his younger son chooses to tease him and sends him to clean up his own mess before they revoke his parental rights.
Willow, Doug’s new wife who apparently possesses supernatural powers, arrives at his house as the kids take off to hang with their friends. After being left in Vegas and avoided by Doug, she is looking to revenge Doug and his whole family, and is definitely out for blood.
Willow targets the family members one by one, hunting them down and killing them in gruesome ways. Kyle, the son, is the last one standing. Will he be able to overcome the killer or will Willow annihilate the whole family?
The film takes place on Halloween and draws the playful scary feel of the holiday, while adding a dark yet amusing tone.
The acting is entertaining. Doug, played by Duke McNeil, portrays an embarrassed father who made a huge mistake and lost his kids’ respect. Kyle, played by Ryan McNeil, brings a unique edge to his not so innocent teenager character. Willow, played by Kyla Russell, delivers the element of surprise, while Baylee, played by Maddey Pierson, successfully adds the angry daughter vibe into the dynamic.
The film’s pacing is great and keeps you on your toes as Willows is on the loose. The sound has a few issues at first that distract the viewer a bit, but they are later resolved, and the added music, composed by Grace Wallis, helps amp the enjoyable watching experience.
The director, Dina McNeil, created this film for the 48 hour film project. The 48 Hour Film Project is an annual film competition in which teams of filmmakers are assigned a genre, a character, a prop, and a line of dialogue, and have 48 hours to create a short film containing those elements, which means it all came together, from concept to finished product in 2 days.
The cinematography, done by Aaron James Ryder, the fun costumes, created by Jivon Andrich, and the supernatural flare, created an awesome short you don’t want to miss. What the filmmakers managed to accomplish in such a short time is truly spectacular, and I can’t wait to see what the director creates when given appropriate amount of time and resources.
