Almost Invisible (2010)

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When I review a film, I like to warn readers of spoilers that might be mentioned, in case the reader has not seen the film. This horror film presents a special case- you cannot spoil a film when you have no earthly idea what is happening in it.

Some community college dudes and babes are looking for a place to par-tay. Don't worry, they are all interchangeable, and I have no clue what any of their names are, anyway. Thin Goth chick April (Sara Cole, the only cast member to make an impression) invites them to her house, since her parents are out of town. Everyone arrives, and the party gets going. April hangs around the periphery, watching the crowd yuk it up. Things quickly change, as the house locks some of the revelers inside, and some may or may not be getting killed off, or something, I think.

This low budget film was shot on video by writer and director David Allingham. Aside from Cole, nothing seems to go right as Allingham plows through a nightmare of amateurish gonzo-type camera angles and badly recorded dialogue- about a quarter of which is understandable. The editing team valiantly tried to save this, there are a couple of neat shots featuring some special effect lighting, but rewinding some scenes, and having characters killed and then coming back to life only adds to the confusion. I was never really sure if the house was haunted, or if April was making all the faux terror happen. At one point, most of the female cast are in bikinis, and the camera consistently catches their rear ends and midriffs during what are supposed to be tense scenes. This is not done in an ironic or humorous way, the film does not set itself up as a spoof, so either Allingham really appreciated the female form, or the camera operator had no clue what they were doing. The constant zooming in and out of a scene will trigger a massive headache, as does the awful acting and script. This is sad, in that the skeleton of a good story is here, and the cast seems willing to follow direction. I am not blaming the budget, or allowing anyone else to blame the budget, as plenty of films shot on video have ended up being excellent. "Almost Invisible" should remain just that- unseen.

Stats:
(2010) 95 min. (1/2 *) out of five stars
-Written and Directed by David Allingham
-Cast: Sara Cole, Jeremy Russell, Hillary Barnett, Kevin Murphy, Michelle Sims, David Allingham, Megan Watson, Daniel Mustone, Brittany Elsner, Rocio Terrones, Sam Navarro, Wendy Donigian, Zachary Raderstorf
(Not Rated)