We Need to Do Something
Director: Sean King O’Grady
Writer: Max Booth III
Based on: his novella
Cast: Sierra McCormick, Vinessa Shaw, Pat Healy, Lisette Alexis, John James Cronin, Ozzy Osbourne
Part of: SLASH Film Festival
Seen on: 3.10.2021
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Content Note: homomisia, stalking, harrassment

Plot:
As a storm is about to hit, Diane (Vinessa Shaw), Robert (Pat Healy) and their children Melissa (Sierra McCormick) and Bobby (John James Cronin) take shelter in the family bathroom. Things are a little tense between them, and that’s not just because of the storm. When the storm seems to have abated, they find that they are trapped in the bathroom, though. And the longer they wait for rescue, the more fraught things become. Especially since Melissa is convinced that hse and her girlfriend Amy (Lisette Alexis) may have had something to do with the storm in the first place.

I liked how things kick off in the film and there is one really excellent scene, but other than that it’s not more than okay – until the end when the explanation for events ruined the entire thing for me.

[SPOILERS]

As I said, the beginning of the film was quite intriguing. The way the storm slowly turns ominous and strange, the barely suppressed anger between the parents, the dynamic between the siblings, but above all the question of what the fuck is going on kept me engaged for a good while. And that despite the fact that I had my issues with Robert as a character (including a rather weak performance by Healy who I’ve definitely seen do better than this). He was just too overblown and didn’t feel like a character anymore, more like a parody.

The best scene of the film, though, is the scene where the dog shows up. And not because you can’t see it coming that something will turn out to be very wrong, but exactly because you do, and that knowledge builds the tension up that the moment when it finally breaks is something to witness indeed.

Apart from that, though, the film can’t really hold the necessary tension and there are lengths that creep in here and there. It’s biggest problem by far though is the explanation for the storm because what it boils down to is that two queer girls who dare to fight back when they are stalked, harrassed and deep fake porn about them is passed around, literally cause the end of the world. And you know what, fuck that noise.

In any case, the rest of the film isn’t strong enough to make up for the sheer assholery of that ending.

Summarizing: better to skip it.