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Cast: Michael Dickson, Shane Twerdun, Carl Toftfelt, Marc Anthony Williams, Andrew Moxham
Canada's remote wilderness becomes a chilly catalyst for terror as a group of archaeologists uncover a strange structure buried in the snow. As paranoia and mistrust take hold, the researchers turn on each other, encouraged by visions of a mysterious figure lurking at the fringes of the woods. Is the terror real or a hallucination? Whatever they've unleashed is a powerful force they may never comprehend…if they survive.
"Black Mountain Side" tells the story of a group of archaeologists in the middle of the Canadian wilderness on a digging expedition. During the expedition they uncover a stone structure with strange symbols on it that the crew tries to decipher. But things soon begin to go bad, first the locals that they hired to help dig seem to have walked off the job and headed out into the wilderness in below zero temperatures. And then their radios go out and they are running out of supplies but things soon get even worse, one by one the men start to get deathly sick and they all start hearing and seeing things as well which causes them to become paranoid of each other and in return they begin to turn on one another. Can the men survive long enough to get help or is something dead set on making sure none of them ever get out alive?
You can call "Black Mountain Side" what you want, I have seen some compare it to "The Thing" and even "The Shining" and those are fair comparisons but the film brings a lot of it's own ideas to the table as well. The first thing I noticed was how well the film was shot, the cinematography is amazing and it makes the Canadian wilderness another character in the film and it sets the perfect mood and creates the perfect atmosphere for what is to come. There is a constant feel of dread and isolation the entire time.
When you mix that with all the mystery surrounding the stone and why the men are getting sick you get one of the creepiest films of the year. And then there is the cast, each and every one of the actors gave fantastic and believable performances, you really feel their sense of desperation and fear.
"Black Mountain Side" might be considering a slow-moving horror/thriller but there is plenty of things happening and the suspense and tension alone will keep you glued to the screen and you wait to see what happens next. I really enjoyed the film, it is well-written, clever and frightening, it gets in your head and it stays there the entire time. This is Writer/Director, Nick Szostakiwskyj's second feature film behind the camera. He really has an eye for horror and storytelling and I hope to see more of him in the future.
"Black Mountain Side" is a horror film that grabs your attention right from the start and it keeps you at the edge of your seat the entire time, I highly recommend this to all fans of horror. I love finding cinematic gems and this is one of them.
Available on DVD now, you can order it HERE.
Released by Monarch Home Entertainment
**** Out Of *****