PLOT: The people in Emmy’s family tend to become violent and suicidal on their 30th birthday, so she goes to her great-grandfather’s hometown in Ireland in hopes of finding out why.
REVIEW: Written and directed by the duo of Anthony Baldino and Ryan Lacen, the horror film Save Me From Everything isn’t an eventful one, but it does make for an intriguing viewing experience. Large portions of the film’s rather brief running time (83 minutes) are actually more reminiscent of an entry in Richard Linklater‘s Before trilogy than any other horror movie, although there is a dark, unnerving edge to it throughout.
The Before comparison comes due to the fact that, much like Before Sunrise, Save Me From Everything centers on two people having extended conversations in a country that is not their place of origin. In this case the setting is the small town of Gorey in Ireland, and the two people we watch interact with each other are both Americans who have just met for the first time: Emmy (Paige Henderson), who is visiting from Los Angeles, and Patrick (Brendan McCay), a man with a troubled past who has moved to Ireland in hopes of cleaning up his act.
Emmy doesn’t have a perfect history herself. In fact, that’s why she has come to Ireland – and her history is also what brings the horror into the picture. For the past three generations, members of her family have become violent and suicidal on their 30th birthdays. It started when her great-grandfather, who had a farm in Ireland, snapped, killed all of his farm animals, and was later found dead on the side of the road. The 30th birthday tragedies continued with her grandfather and with Emmy’s own mother, who murdered Emmy’s father on her 30th birthday and then stepped into traffic. Emmy is about to turn 30 herself and she’s hoping she’ll find answers about her family curse in Gorey so she can avoid the fate of the people who have preceded her. She has sought out the help of Patrick because she learned that their great-grandfathers were neighbors… but expecting someone to have a lot of information on their great-grandfather wouldn’t pan out too often, and Patrick is less helpful than most.
There is a “ticking clock” element to the story, as Emmy’s birthday is swiftly approaching and her mental state is clearly starting to unravel. Baldino and Lacen also keep things interesting by throwing in the occasional twist and turn – but none of this would really work if the two leads hadn’t been perfectly cast. Henderson and McCay both do strong work in their roles and are able to hold our attention while making their conversations seem natural. Henderson is particularly fascinating as Emmy, this woman on the edge of a breakdown who we need to have some level of investment in. She and the filmmakers are able to make us care about Emmy and hope turning 30 will go better for her than it has for previous generations.
Emmy and Patrick get most of the lines, but there are a few other characters with some dialogue, most notably Breffni Holahan and Kieran O’Reilly as Gorey locals who are both shady in their own way. As the story went on, I began to think the film might have been more satisfying if either or both of those local characters had more prominent roles; as it is, I found the ending of the movie to be somewhat underwhelming. The conclusion is fitting, but I was left with the feeling that the filmmakers could have done something more with the final moments.
If you’re in the mood to watch a horror movie, Save Me From Everything probably isn’t going to do much to satisfy that craving. This movie would be better to put on when you want to watch a dark drama, a “walk and talk” movie where someone might become homicidal by the time the end credits roll, or if you’re in the mood to see good performances from some actors we’ll hopefully be seeing a lot more of in the future.
Save Me From Everything is currently making the festival rounds and won the Best Thriller Feature award at the Nightmares Film Festival in September. The next screening will be part of the virtual New York City Horror Film Festival on December 4th.