sweeneytom

Malum

Almost a full decade ago Anthony DiBlasi released Last Shift, about a rookie cop being assigned the titular graveyard stay at the station and told not to leave no matter what. A cult makes that a challenge. I finally watched it a few years ago (after a handful of years of it being recommended to me) and loved it, thought about it for weeks. Didn't break new ground (especially with its ending), but was just a really tight tense well-paced 87min film that still found a way to go gonzo in the third act despite its limitations, and sometimes that's all you need or want Another one of my most-looked-forward-to films of this year's first half, Malum is DiBlasi's just-released remake, with a bigger budget to work with, more characters, and a different take on the story. This time the cop intentionally took the job and shift because she wanted to learn more about her dad's involvement with the cult. Originally believing him as a hero who saved some girls they abducted, she grows to find out there was far more that she wasn't aware of, including how he died (given away in the opening scene, in the process probably making the ending more predictable than Last Shift's was) Ultimately while I still prefer Last Shift, for me it's just the difference between great and pretty good. DiBlasi manages tension really well; it could have seemed a fluke with the original, but maintaining it with new directions in this one shows that's just not the case, he knows what he's doing and that makes me look forward to what he does next more than a lot of indie horror directors currently! It gets pretty bloody and nuts in the final third. And the bigger emphasis on plot and the cult works to its advantage, some of the standout scenes involve these minor characters that have a chance to breathe, even though this is only a few minutes longer than the original The big thing I feel is worth criticizing is there's an overreliance on hallucinatory imagery; Last Shift kept you on the edge by showing you just enough while holding back just enough that you were left unsure what was real. Malum doesn't show such trust in its audience in that regard, and there's a few too many jumpscare dream sequences. Despite that, man I liked the last half hour! I can definitely tell why he wanted the budget to reflect his vision the first time, but less wound up being more; if you can only see one version of DiBlasi's cult film, it should still be Last Shift

breakfastcowl

Malum

This is your slightly-more-monied remake??

꒰ა 𓂋 ໒꒱

Malum

I have no idea if this is good or isn't for me.

ImAChillGuy

Malum

Since its a remake of The last shift, it was just fine. Better graphics and small expansion of the last shift. Overall, its not too bad.