by Joseph Perry and Mike Imboden
In our “The Good, the Bad, and the Verdict” film reviews, Joseph and Mike give their thoughts on a slice of cinema. For this installment, it’s Canadian creature feature Scared Shitless by Vivieno Caldinelli.
Synopsis
Plumber Don (Steven Ogg) and his germophobic son Sonny (Daniel Doheny) are forced to get their hands dirty to save the residents of an apartment building — including part-owner of the building Patricia (Chelsea Clark) and scientist Dr. Robert (Mark McKinney) — when a genetically engineered, blood-thirsty creature escapes into the plumbing system.
The Good
Joseph: What a blast Scared Shitless is! If, like me, you were initially a bit leery of watching the film because you were expecting wall-to-wall scatalogical humor and visuals, put those concerns to rest. Caldinelli, working from a screenplay by Brandon Cohen, has crafted a fun creature feature loaded with fantastic-looking gore galore courtesy of Creature FX Designer Steven Kostanski (director of such films as Psycho Goreman and this year’s Frankie Freako, and a highly accomplished makeup and effects artist) and his fellow special effects crew members, a soundtrack loaded with classic Canadian rock songs, and a huge heart. Ogg and Doheny make for a great father-and-son team who find themselves in deep . . . er, trouble on what should have been a routine plumbing call, and the spirited Clark rounds out our trio of main protagonists in an important supporting role. The often-sweet chemistry between the three leads is great, as is the comic timing not only between them but throughout the film. The supporting characters provide a nice amount of humor, including a sex-minded senior citizen couple (Lorna Wilson and Donald Tripe). Caldinelli keeps things moving at a steady clip, and balances the gore, guffaws, and suspense wonderfully.
Mike: How can you not like a film that features an earnest and hardworking plumber, his germaphobic son, and a plucky young woman who’s tasked with running an apartment building her family needs to sell? Vivieno Caldinelli answers that question with a resounding “You can’t” in the form of Scared Shitless. I was hesitant for us to screen this at first as we came off a run of sub-par movies recently, thinking the last thing I wanted to deal with was more… well, it’s in the title. Thankfully I came around and was rewarded by a movie with far less scatological humor than expected and instead is full of sincere father-son bonding, great character development and interaction, fantastic practical effects, and is on par with any creature feature with a similar plot.
The pacing is great, moving along at a brisk pace and clocking in at less than 80 minutes leaving no room for mindless and pointless padding. Every moment matters and nothing is wasted. Heck, it’s even got a nice soundtrack!
The Bad
Joseph: What’s not to like in Scared Shitless? I had too much of a great time to pick nits. The film wants to put lumps in your throat and laughs in your belly while churning your stomach a bit, and it does a fine job at all three.
Mike: There’s nothing wrong with Scared Shitless unless you’re adverse to oodles of slimy blood and guts courtesy of Steven Kostanski's masterful effects.
The Verdict
Joseph: You’ll come for the cool-looking creature effects and the gruesome-looking denouements, and you’ll stay for the humor that ranges from hilarious to heartwarming without ever going overly broad. Scared Shitless is a strong contender for my Best of 2024 genre-film list, and I highly recommend it for fans of creature features, horror comedies, and impressive practical effects work.
Mike: Take one part of James Gunn’s Slither and put the creature in the uber-creative hands of Steven Kostanski, take one part of great casting including the underrated Steven Ogg, and one part heartfelt and funny script and you’ve got Vivieno Caldinelli’s masterful Scared Shitless.
Scared Shitless
Directed By: Vivieno Caldinelli
Written By: Brandon Cohen
Starring: Steven Ogg, Daniel Doheny, Chelsea Clark, Mark McKinney
Run Time: 1h 16m
Rating: NR
Release Date: July 21, 2024 (Canada)
[No trailer was available at the time of this review]
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