Movies
[BD Review] ‘The Sleeping Soul’
The Sleeping Soul begins with an excruciatingly long intro containing the same piano notes playing while a couple consoles each other at a grave. The woman pregnant and the man clearly the more upset of the two, they leave the cemetery just as painfully slow (we do get some drums) and day becomes night – and not in that sped-up film sense – by the time we’re finally on a paved road.
And right when you’d think we’re onto something, the couple drives along a stretch of road while another driver drinks and smokes on the other side. And eventually intoxicated driver crashes head on into the couples car. And only then do we finally get a title card.
While single piano notes strung together is charming in a John Carpenter film, here it is just emphasizes exactly what this 45 minute movie is.
Agonizingly ****ing slow.
Every shot in The Sleeping Soul appears deliberate. Oddly angled to appear artistic. There are so many that is becomes questionable as to why they are the way they are. Why do we need to be inside the computer monitor looking out? Why do we need to be inside the fridge when someone opens it and looks in (though that did once make for a killer Parker Lewis Can’t Lose opening)? Why do we need to be lying on a countertop looking at what is on said countertop?
Getting passed the production, there is not much left to hold onto in this film. The story is a hodge-podge of Paranormal Activity and The Sixth Sense – but The Sixth Sense after everyone had seen it and copied the ending twist. The film relies on the sole acting of Ayse Howard as Grace. Watching Howard’s performance is intriguing. The art of pretending you are a different person. That you are pretending to do things this person would do. The art of pretending you are typing on a computer, perhaps. Howard shows that some people are harshly challenged by such a feat.
The Sleeping Soul is more a student acting class submission video than a movie. It did leave me with a hard pressing question thought. How do airbags not deploy in a head on collision?
The next V/H/S installment is on the way, this time from producer Roy Lee (Weapons, IT), and it’s landed on its new theme.
Spooky Pictures and Image Nation are teaming to produce V/H/S: SCP, Variety reports, and it’ll be the first feature-length addition to the online collective fiction project, the SCP (Special Containment Procedures) Foundation.
The SCP Foundation began in 2008 as a collaborative digital project and has since grown into one of the largest fan-driven horror and sci-fi universes online. You can get acquainted with the SCP Foundation via Bloody FM’s SCP Archives podcast.
V/H/S: SCP will be framed as “’recovered field documentation,’ or video evidence gathered, redacted, and archived by the secretive organization. Standalone segments in the anthology will focus on different objects, entities, or events under the containment-breach narrative.”
Spooky Pictures is headed by genre veterans Steven Schneider (Insidious, Paranormal Activity) and Roy Lee (Weapons, IT). They’ll be joined by Josh Goldbloom (V/H/S/94, V/H/S/99, V/H/S/Halloween) and Michael Schreiber (V/H/S/94, V/H/S/Beyond) as producers.
“The horror genre continues to be a remarkable launchpad for new talent to share original creations, and the vast SCP universe has provided a vital incubator for this creativity to thrive,” Spooky Pictures co-founder Steven Schneider said. “Along with INS, this next project reinforces our shared commitment to look in new and unexpected spaces for stories. We can’t wait to expand the V/H/S franchise with new, fresh, and terrifying stories that will keep viewers coming back for more.”
V/H/S launched in 2012, followed by 2013’s V/H/S/2, 2014’s V/H/S: Viral, 2021’s V/H/S/94, 2022’s V/H/S/99, 2023’s V/H/S/85, 2024’s V/H/S/Beyond, and 2025’s V/H/S/Halloween.
The upcoming installment marks the ninth film in this franchise.
The SCP Foundation is a worldwide force dedicated to securing, containing, and protecting anomalies from people – At least according to the lore of the website.
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