Shadows on the Wall | Shelby Oaks

Shelby Oaks

dir-scr Chris Stuckmann
prd Aaron B Koontz, Chris Stuckmann, Cameron Burns, Ashleigh Snead
with Camille Sullivan, Sarah Durn, Brendan Sexton III, Keith David, Michael Beach, Robin Bartlett, Charlie Talbert, Sloane Harlow Burkett, Brenna Sherman, Ashleigh Snead, Lauren Ashley Berry, Caisey Cole
release US 24.Oct.25,
UK 29.Oct.25
24/US 1h31

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Cleverly stirring in television newscasts, home movies and found footage, this horror thriller is continually eye-catching. Although it's a little frustrating that writer-director Chris Stuckmann relies on cliches to create the creepy atmospherics, from a jittery sound mix to the dark and grimy sets. And while there's a compelling mystery at the centre of the plot, it doesn't go anywhere particularly interesting. Still, the jump scares are fun.

In Ohio, Mia (Sullivan) is obsessed with finding her sister Riley (Durn), who went missing 12 years ago as her ghost-hunting team was exploring the abandoned town of Shelby Oaks, with its overgrown amusement park and ominous disused prison. Mia's quest has strained her relationship with Robert (Sexton), especially when she begins to believe that the imaginary monster that terrified her sister as a young girl might be real. When she discovers some new video footage, her search becomes more urgent. So she consults with a local detective (Beach) and the former prison warden (David).

Freaky figures lurk throughout the movie, from shadows of a demon and its hell hounds to a gloomy woman (Bartlett) living in an isolated cabin. Satanic symbols are carved into trees, and there are sudden bursts of violence peppered right across the running time. But very little about this rings true, as everyone keeps doing inexplicable things. Mia is the worst offender, always heading into absurdly menacing places with only haphazard attention to her safety. And where the plot goes is rather thinly nasty.

At the centre, Sullivan is likeable as the intrepid Mia, even if her actions are increasingly boneheaded. This is partly because the character's back-story feels merely cursory, and we never feel much of a connection between Mia and Durn's sparky paranormal investigator Riley. But then, all of the roles are well-played and underwritten, including Sexton's mopey Robert, Beach's perplexed cop and David's haunted official.

That said, there's some fun to be had in the relentlessly gloopy production design. This is one of those movies in which everything is underlit, even with the lights on, and all of the walls seem to be dripping with black mould. The idea of a child's bedtime monster coming to life is clever, but this demon never quite gains enough traction to be frightening. And as always, the sudden jolts are funny rather than scary. But for audiences looking for some gruesome entertainment, this might do the trick. [15 themes, ] .25 FrightFest

themes, language, violence 27.Oct.25

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