Cassadaga DVD Review

Written by Jennifer Turner

DVD released by Archstone Distribution

Cassadaga Poster

Directed by Anthony Diblasi
Written by Bruce Wood & Scott Polley
2011, Region 1 (NTSC), 102 Minutes, Rated R
DVD released on December 31st, 2013

Starring:
Kelen Coleman as Lily
Kevin Alejandro as Mike
Louise Fletcher as Claire

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Review:

Horror movies often have the misfortune of being predictable. You can guess exactly what is going to happen, rendering most scare scenes and plot twists unsatisfying. I am happy to say Cassadaga is anything but.

Cassadaga is about a young deaf girl who moves to the self-purported psychic town in an effort to get over the death of her sister. Her attempts at a normal life are thwarted when she inadvertently contacts a vengeful spirit who wants her to solve her murder. It's like Stir of Echoes minus the Kevin Bacony goodness.

I loved this movie; this is probably one of the best films that Horror DNA has deigned to assign me. To begin with it actually startled me on occasion and I consider myself a rather jaded horror fan. From the opening scene on, I realized that I was watching something different. Something that was smart, creative, and original.

There was only one moment I could have deemed predictable which was the identity of the killer. I knew who it was the moment he came on screen. Still this knowledge did not detract from the enjoyment of the film.

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I fell in love with the main character Lily (Kelen Coleman - Children of the Corn: Genesis). She is kind and likable but doesn't fall into the typical Mary Sue persona that a lot of horror heroines do. She also doesn't follow the traditional route of suddenly becoming an action girl when it comes time to fight the villain. Lily is a realistic character which makes it easier to root for her at the end. I was also pleased to see Louise Fletcher (One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest), a favorite actress of mine, even though she is woefully underused.

The special effects are perfectly done. They manage to be disturbing without being revolting. There are a couple of scenes that are so disturbing I had to turn away from the screen. That is something else a more traditional horror movie can't make me do.

My only quibble with Cassadaga is the very abrupt ending. As I had said before, I grew to love Lily's character and would have like to have seen what had become of her. It would have been nice to have a final scene added with her.

If you are looking for something that you haven't seen before, check this movie out. It is a must see experience for all the jaded horror movie fans out there.

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Video and Audio:

Cassadaga was decently shot with some beautiful cinematography but fails during night scenes. A couple of times I had to rewind the film because I couldn't see what was going on.

You can hear everything clearly and it isn't drowned by the soundtrack like a lot of movies do.