Penny Dreadful

I've seen plenty of short horror films through my travels. Most are complete trash which make me ask myself "How the hell did this get distribution?" But every now and then, you come across something different, something unique. When it seems like all hope is lost and you're about to give up on movies, that gem comes along that makes the wait worth it. Walking into "Penny Dreadful", I never thought it would be anything more then another sloppy horror short. But it turned out to be that gem us horror fans so badly needed.

After her Aunt dies, Jessica (Emily Vaughan) and David (Sebastian Lacause) inherit a huge house in the upscale section of NYC. Right away, strange things start happening. Jessica is sure the house is home to some odd apparition. She brings in Psychic Trudie Tredwell (Betsy Palmer) to check things out, while David is constantly away, working. According to Trudie, the house is completely ghost-free. Regardless of the house being haunted or not, the weird happenings continue. Incredibly creepy phone calls of a woman screaming for help and Jessica waking up in a refreshingly large pool of blood, really take a toll on Jessica. It pushes her over the edge, and there may be no turning back...

The first thing I want to say about this movie, is that it puts the characters first. That's not only rare for a horror film, but for ANY modern film in general. Being a horror film, it would usually showcase the gore and violence above everything else. But there is little of both in this film. Don't get me wrong, this movie does have some nice gore shots, really good in fact. Nothing extreme to push it to splatter film status, but definitely enough to satisfy the gorehounds and gross out the chicks. There are also some extreme moments of tension here. I've watched every kind of extreme film genre there is, and even I felt a sense of dread at times. The cinematography and music were top-notch as well. I'll leave it at that, or this review will end up being 60 pages long.

Of course, the characters wouldn't have become who they are without the wisely chosen cast. The biggest attention grabber here is obviously Betsy Palmer, which any horror buff will know, played Pamela Voorhees in the ultimate slasher epic, "Friday the 13th." Although her role is brief, she does what she came to do and really adds something to the movie. Another known name in the horror community, Warrington Gillette, also stars. Gillette played the unmasked Jason in Friday the 13th Part 2. He did an outstanding job as the a-hole husband of the couple who buy the house from Jessica and David. I'm not sure who played the real estate agent, but he was a real scumbag and I loved it. Bryan has thrown in some truly REAL characters. Leading lady Emily Vaughan really made this movie something special. I hope she sticks with the craft, because I see big things for her. Oh yeah, and she's really hot too. I had the pleasure of meeting her in person. I'd also like to note Sebastian Lacause, who played the husband, starred in "Boogie Nights" as a character called "Hot Traxx Dancer." That's hands-down the greatest name ever. It has nothing to do with this movie, but it's so ridiculous that I had to say something about it.

Hollywood has lost its magic, it's up to little guys like Bryan Norton to keep that flame burning. Penny Dreadful is a ball-gripping experience that leaves a taste of blood in your mouth. This is an amazing short horror film from Bryan Norton, and I'll be waiting for his debut feature.

Synopis: Jessica and David Clausen (Emily Vaughan and Sebastian Lacause) are a young married couple that inherit a beautiful brownstone townhouse in the West Village from Jessica's long lost Aunt. The couple is shown the empty house by an estate attorney (Peter Dupre) who delivers some bad about inheritance tax on the property. Jessica and David, in short, can't keep the house. The couple do, however, move in temporarily, as the agent promises to line up a few buyers. Slowly, Jessica experiences strange occurrences in the house. Noises from downstairs, a blonde child in a red sweater (John Thompson) looking at her from the front window. Instead of being scared off, Jessica embraces it. David, too busy with medical school to care, humors her. Jessica's friend Marla (Tina Krause) dismisses her claims that the house is haunted thinking instead it's some sort of repressed guilt. But is the house trying to tell her something? She enlists the aid of Trudie (Betsy Palmer), a dotty local psychic to figure out what's happening. Review: Right at this moment, the best way for me to describe my feelings on "Penny Dreadful" is that it is cutely, immensely sad. The inclusion of "cutely" there may appear... strange. While this movie was chilling in certain parts, the ultimate feeling it conveys (to me) is some sense of a heavenly, sad and beautiful evil. And also that feeling of how separated from the rest of the world the core story is, it's like an own universe where everything is about someone passing through time in darkness. The story is complex and moving,the acting is very good (Emily Vaughan is very understated and very good in the lead role),the direction is elegant, the sets and locations perfectly fit the mood of the film. I must add that the ending is one of the most stunning and PERFECT ever,in every ways (direction,cinematography,acting,music)! To sum up: this film is sad, chilling, haunting and yes, in some ways, moving. I have read a review that criticized the film's slow pace: I, for one, especially appreciate the Director's willingness to take time to build suspense and terror. I believe that silence is an important part of a horror movie (perhaps almost every kind of movie) and it's obvious that the Director shares my appreciation for what's NOT said. What a treat this turned out to be. If you judge a movie based on blood and guts, or CGI effects, you won't care for this. This film is a much more cerebral movie, which requires multiple viewings to take it in fully

This little film really caught me off guard. I couldn't believe this was a student low budget film. The quality is excellent and very very well made.

The director of this film has a bright future ahead of him and I cant wait to see what else he comes up with. \ Betsy Palmer is wonderful as Trudie the psychic and even though his part isn't a big one it was great to see another Friday veteran Warrington Gillette again after an all too long absence from films.

This film deserves all the attention it can get. Don't miss this one and pay close attention to ALL the details.

What a night! I attended a cast screening of the new short film Penny Dreadful last night which was a wonderful time. Betsy Palmer was on hand to sign autographs after the show as was the lovely Emily Vacchiano who plays the lead role of Jessica in the movie. Both were so nice and were willing to talk to fans. Penny Dreadful is an excellent film with good, old fashioned story telling. No flashy or slick BS thank God. Listen carefully and you can hear the 'Silver Shamrock' jingle from Halloween 3 in the background of the kitchen , which made the audience erupt with laughter, as did an wonderful in-joke about Betsy's take on dead children being mischievous. The story is good and there is a neat twist at the end that makes me want to see the movie all over again so I can pay more attention.

Penny Dreadful: written and Directed By Bryan Norton. Starring Emily Vaughan, Sebastian Lacause, Tina Krause, Peter Dupre and Betsy Palmer. Screenin Date: Oct 26, 2005

***1/2 out of **** stars

'Penny Dreadful' is old fashioned haunted house movie that will most probably please connoisseurs of the genre. While it hardly breaks new ground, the film is at times funny, scary and violent. There are subtle references to other films, such as "Don't Look Now" and "The Haunting of Julia". Betsy Palmer (Mrs. Voorhees from the original Friday the 13th) comes to investigate a seemingly haunted New York City townhouse inherited by a handsome couple Jessica and David Clausen(Emily Vaughn and Sebastian Lacause). Is the house possessed or is poor Jessica losing her mind from repressed guilt of a secret abortion from years before? Just when you think you've figured it out, you haven't. The acting, score and cinematography are first rate.