Due to the crazy fad of reality television, there’s a new horror sub-genre that is emerging – the horror reality genre. In this new sub-genre the film follows the story of a reality television show that is suddenly hit by some sort of horrific element. Think Wrong Turn 2, The Task, Grave Encounters, etc. Now we can add another film to the growing list, a little film called Chill.
In 1988 eight university students were murdered while playing a murder-mystery game called Chill. The killer was never found and the town has since moved on and tried to forget about its dark past. Currently, two university students – Jared and Kyle – are in the midst of reviving the Chill game and are pitching it as an online reality show. Unbeknownst to them, someone is killing off the cast and crew of the virtual show. Is it the same psycho from over twenty years ago, or is it a new player taking on the role of the killer in Chill?
Chill is directed by Meredith Holland and Noelle Bye, who also co-produced and co-wrote the indie feature along with Roger Conners. Roger Conners plays the lead role of Kyle, and is supported in Chill by fellow cast members Brad Arner, Janine Sarnowski, DJ Remark, Angelia DeLuca, Bella Sin, Jason Orr, Erinn, Bakun, Rick Montgomery Jr., and Kelly Joann Rogers.
Chill is your typical indie horror flick, but it was made with enough love and care that it looks like a piece of cinema with a much bigger budget. From speaking with cast and crew several times, I know there have been several re-shoots and delays in release. I have to say that it was well worth the wait because now the Chill creatures have a feature they are happy with and I, as a horror fan, have a film that was a complete pleasure to view. Once again Chill proves that the great North West is one of the best hubs for independent horror films.
For me, as a viewer and reviewer, Chill is broken up into two very distinct parts. Part one is the introduction to the craziness where you meet the characters, learn the game, and the first few murders happen. Part two completely flips part one on its head and dives full force into a bloody, suspenseful horror film. This is an important point to get across, and I’ve said this all along, but Chill is as much an old school murder mystery as it is a horror film. The murder mystery genre has fallen to the depths of the horror genre recently, but Chill could be the film that revitalizes the genre and brings it back to prominence, at least as far as indies go. Dare I say it, but Chill could be groundbreaking as far as sub-genres go? (Should we could how many times I say genre?)
Sure the cast of Chill do a fantastic job at bringing their characters to life, but the real medal goes to Bye, Holland, and Conners who actually invented them. Now a days horror films have tons of throw away characters who viewers can’t relate to and characters that they want to die…quickly. I’m happy to say that I enjoyed every single character in this feature, my favorites being Raven (played by Kelly Joann Rogers), Kelly Masters (played by Erinn Bakun), and Bella (played by Bella Sin). Kyle (played by Roger Conners) would be on this list as well had he not worn his Native American chiche hats during the entire production.
All in all Chill was just fantastic. I was able to watch a rough cut of the first half a few months ago and I’ve been dying to see the rest since then. Chill is a slow churned horror film that can appeal to every type of fan. It has suspense and mystery, comedy and gore, interesting characters, and a plot that isn’t oversaturated at this point. I know Chill is being submitted to film festivals at the present time, so if you see it playing at a venue near you – take the opportunity to see it! I guarantee Chill will be a game you’ll want to play.
