Night's End Review

Synopsis:
An anxious shut-in moves into a haunted apartment, hiring a stranger to perform an exorcism which quickly takes a horrific turn.

Editing: Mike Olenick
Music: CoastalDives
Cast: Geno Walker, Michael Shannon, Kate Arrington, Theo Germaine, Daniel Kyri, Morgan S. Reesh, Felonious Munk, Lawrence Grimm

Directors: Jennifer Reeder
Writers: Brett Neveu
Cinematography: Christopher Rejano

I think Night’s End screenwriter Brett Neveu got scared by the more serious themes set up at the beginning of his screenplay. It’s the only way I can explain the sharp dive in quality on show here and the sudden shift of tonal style to something that feels like it’s supposed to be a dark comedy. There’s some stuff to like in Night’s End, but it’s all ultimately wasted.

Ken (Geno Walker) has suffered a breakdown following what sounds like a long period of alcoholism, which caused him to lose his job, wife and kids. He’s moved into a new apartment, the sole location of Night’s End, and spends nights talking to family and friends. He claims he’s doing perfectly fine, but as we can see, he is far from it as windows are barred up with newspaper, and any semblance of outside activity of sunlight is kept as far from Ken’s home as possible. For some reason, Ken, who I assume is in their early thirties, attempts to make YouTube videos on various subjects as a get-rich-quick scheme. Thinking he can simply come across the right topic, and the views will roll in. Of course, that doesn’t happen, but when one of his taxidermy birds falls from his wall, his friends encourage him to play into the ghostly nature for his videos.

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I liked the first thirty minutes of Night’s End because there was a layer of intrigue and vulnerability to Ken. Geno Walker plays Ken as someone with hurt on their shoulders, and the shut-in searching for a way to connect to the outside world is an interesting set-up. But when the supernatural elements are pushed more and more to the forefront, the film gets more than a little bit silly.

When Lawrence Grimm shows up as a back-door priest with theories on poltergeists, his hammy performance feels like it belongs in another movie. Even Michael Shannon, who is obviously having fun as Ken’s ex-wife’s new partner, is a little too uppity for the movie’s tone. I have no idea if it was meant to be sillier than I took it, and maybe that’s half the problem with Night’s End — this is a film that starts very serious but quickly expects the audience to be aboard its sudden twist into a broad struck supernatural playhouse.

There’s a twist in the last act of Night’s End that some may like, but it was just the cherry on top of destruction for me. A film that started with an interesting idea and quickly cascaded off the side of a cliff.