THEY WILL OUTLIVE US ALL – The DVD Review

Review by Dane Marti

In our zany age, apocalyptic weather conditions pop up around the world in a plethora of evil metrological events. Quite often, they leave behind massive casualties, twisted metal and devastated, stunned humans. Since people also live in a paranoid world in which terrorism and crime are ubiquitous,  a good horror film can often use modern existence to highlight a story.

They Will Outlive Us All takes place almost entirely in a Brooklyn building…a seedy structure similar to places that this reviewer has lived in. The edifice itself is one of the preeminent elements in the film, reminiscent of the kind of buildings found in, say, a Roman Polanski film.  It deserves an Oscar. Or a Condemned sign….

Taking place in 2016, Margot and Daniel live a simple life…a contemplative life. Are they lovers? Does it matter?  They know what the fundamentally essential things in life are:  Drinking, smoking pot and watching horror films. What could be more important, I ask you? They are both likable in a slightly dorky, bohemian way that (although I am now 50—Damn! —I tend to remember this age and lifestyle quite well. Ha. ).

Wow, the weather outside their building is dire and getting worse. In the flick, the metropolitan area has been blasted with a succession of ‘Frankenstorms.’  While dangerous, the name also implies other subtle, sinister things… Spooky scientific, chemically abnormal anomalies have been brought into nature, bad things contained within the inclement weather. Hell, the economy of 2016 doesn’t look like it’s improved much either. Damn.

At first the couple tries to ignore the big picture outside their fortress and just ‘do their thing,’ but…now strange things are beginning to occur within their dilapidated structure.  Bizarre things…inexplicably grotesque things!  A dude down the hallway has died in his dwelling, the authorities leaving behind yellow crime tape plastered over every nook and cranny, especially his bathroom door! How will our beleaguered couple withstand this new onslaught? Well, probably a lot better than I probably would have!  Actually, I remember situations very similar to some of the films opening scenes; this adds element verisimilitude to the overall movies’ set up.

Reading the back of the DVD box, I wasn’t sure how much this film would work, or if it would simply fall into the ever-growing massive bucket of low budget horror films worth watching once before tossing into a vat of lava.

However, the movie is actually a blast. Much of the storyline is restrained, overflowing with black humor, Hitchcockian Point of View shots and subtle, sick fun. Although there are definitely horror and shocks, the film is also quite witty.

To me, the best element of the movie is the dialogue. Obviously this is an independent film with budgetary limitations; this not a hindrance, but a wonderful example of ‘less is more.’ The flick lets the viewer bring into play his/her imagination.

Without the two main leads, both likable and believable, the movie would not perform. For that reason, this is a horror film that deals less with the special effects and makeup        (although they are cool) and more on the interaction between the couple. Actor Nat Cassidy is a lot of fun, performing a thin tightrope between funny and fearful

Director Patrick Shearer has a deft handle on keeping the story together with style and finesse; he is a man who knows the creepy inner workings of mature apartment bathrooms. The camerawork becomes another character, involving the viewer into the movie’s wet, oozing, nightmarish, creepy world.
As producer, writer and co-star (A Renaissance Woman!), Jessi Gotta is perfect as the heroine, a cute, fiery woman; there is nothing glamorous or unrealistic about her character. She is believable in the role: Her character, Margot, is a fighter one moment, later confused and vulnerable when the going gets tough. Even as the story goes happily haywire, Ms. Gotta still pulls back and brings realism and humanity to her scenes.