Camera Obscura (2017)
Starring Christopher Denham, Nadja Bobyleva, Catherine Curtin, Chase Williamson
Directed by Aaron B. Koontz
There was a time when people believed that photography was evil and that as it captured your image, it also snatched your soul. How else could such an amazing phenomenon occur with such simplicity? It had to be the work of the devil!
In short order, this notion was used as fodder for penny dreadful stories, novels, and eventually television. To name just a couple of takes on this theme, there’s an unforgettable episode of “The Twilight Zone” (“A Most Unusual Camera”) and a “Night Gallery” episode called “Camera Obscura.” There’s also a 2010 horror film titled Camera Obscura, written and directed by Drew Daywalt.
Which brings us to this new flick by first-time director and co-writer Aaron B. Koontz. It’s also titled Camera Obscura, and while it’s not Serlingesque at all, savvy genre fans will definitely make the connection and have some shorthand on what they are about to watch before seeing even a trailer.
Fragile Jack Zeller, played effectively by Christopher Denham (“Billions,” Shutter Island), is a psychologically shattered photographer trying to readjust to everyday life after the horrors of war he lensed in Afghanistan. He’s shut himself away from the world and stopped doing the things he loves. As an encouragement to start taking pictures again, Jack’s fiancée, Claire (Nadja Bobyleva, Bridge of Spies), buys him a vintage World War II camera as a present. Reluctantly, he takes the bait and buys a few rolls of film. Right off the bat, the camera seems odd. It works okay, but even though he put color film in it, Jack’s prints all come out in black and white. When he takes the thing in for repairs, the man behind the counter tells him, “This camera is not capable of taking photos.”
Nevertheless, Jack continues taking photos – and gets paid to do it. He’s hired by a neighborhood real estate company to document their various properties, but what he sees in the moment and what comes out later in development are entirely different. The pictures all have dead bodies in them. At first Jack questions his sanity. After all, PTSD is serious. It can cause visions. But he soon concludes, “This camera is demonic!,” adding, “I just don’t know what the truth is anymore.”
His loved ones aren’t very helpful, saying things to him like, “Jack, that’s crazy!” and “Jack, this is really weird.”
While I’ll admit I found the dialogue weak (see above) and felt the script was not quite tight enough to sustain a 95-minute runtime (the story sags here and there), I will say the acting was good and so was the cinematography and score. The music is by Steve Moore (The Guest), and the DP is Chris Heinrich (he’s worked on some big films and shot several shorts) – their work complements each other nicely.
Camera Obscura is more psychological thriller than horror – in fact, it’s not scary at all – but there are enough moments of suspense and mystery to make it worth your while.
Having debuted at the 2017 Florida Film Festival to raves, Camera Obscura is set to hit limited theaters on June 9 and VOD and Digital HD on June 13.
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Film
Categorized:Reviews
