In 2019, writer/director Caleb J. Phillips won the SXSW Midnight Shorts Jury Award for his terrifying short film “Other Side of the Box.” The filmmaker shifts gears for his SXSW return with his feature debut, Imposters, an emotionally charged genre-bending mystery that keeps you firmly in its grip. Phillips trades jump scares for psychological horror, anchored by another knockout performance by genre stalwart Jessica Rothe (Happy Death Day, Affection).
Imposters makes clear that appearances can and will be very deceiving from the outset, with an introduction to protagonist Paul (Charlie Barnett) in an affectionate and intimate moment with a woman who’s soon revealed to be his mistress. Paul’s actual wife, Marie (Jessica Rothe), seems oblivious to her husband’s unhappiness, let alone his straying ways. To her credit, the couple has just relocated to a quiet small town to start anew with their new baby. Marie’s too preoccupied with settling in and raising their son, which leads to catastrophe when the baby goes missing during his birthday party. Her relentless determination to find him means she eventually succeeds, though Paul starts to suspect the child she brought back isn’t actually theirs.
It’s a setup that reads familiar, complete with creepy red herring townies and an ominous cold open that brings titles like Pet Sematary or folktales of changelings to mind, but that’s part of Phillips’ crafty deception. The truth behind what’s happening is as compelling as the enigmatic road getting there, all in service of its somber and sometimes outright disturbing depiction of a relationship well past its healthy prime. Paul and Marie’s marriage is as complicated as their missing child predicament, creating a constant push and pull of shifting allegiances between them as new details expose their flaws. Yul Vazquez (Books of Blood, “The Outsider”) brings warmth and a little worldbuilding as the local sheriff, with Bates Wilder supporting as a not-so-effective but heartbreaking suspect in the inciting disappearance, but Imposters almost entirely rests upon Charlie Barnett and Jessica Rothe’s shoulders.
Phillips puts his couple through the wringer as his feature debut subjects Paul and Marie to grueling physical and emotional devastation in their bid to repair their fractured family. Barnett deftly overcomes his character’s more cowardly impulses and infidelity in act one, coaxing empathy for Paul’s vulnerabilities and misguided but pure intentions, especially once shit hits the proverbial fan, and the horror arrives in earnest. His turn bolsters Phillips’ script, which is careful to point out that both parties are as responsible for the state of the deteriorating marriage.
To that end, Imposters quickly becomes Jessica Rothe’s film in the back half. Rothe gets downright primal as Marie’s maternal instincts drive her to commit shocking, violent acts, and a late sequence of clever staging, sci-fi trickery, and high stakes conflict serves as a jaw-dropping showcase of her talents. It’s a sucker punch of a sequence, both in its pitch black darkness and for Rothe’s guttural screams of fury and devastation. Phillips’ script aims for raw, emotional honesty, and Barnett and Rothe more than rise to the occasion.
Gripping performances and morally ambiguous protagonists propel this sci-fi mystery, one that’s stripped down to its basics in both style and tone. There’s something cozy and nondescript about the wooded small town, and Imposters never veers far past Paul and Marie’s property. Instead, Imposters maintains laser focus on its leads as their marriage reaches a crossroads in more ways than one, while facing one of the most agonizing scenarios for a parent. Phillips script also never balks from emotional honesty; Imposters builds to a fitting end that doesn’t let anyone off the hook.
That Phillips skipped expanding his award-winning short into a feature-length film for his debut, instead opting to explore form and genre with a lean, devastating genre-bender, indicates a thoughtful emerging filmmaker willing to take risks. Imposters is a confident debut, one that keeps you guessing with its mystery setup and shifty protagonists. While its ultimate genre reveals don’t exactly forge new ground, its well-timed and executed reveals and grim character work ensure a gripping new vision of domestic horror and mark Phillips as one to watch.
Imposters made its world premiere at SXSW. Release info TBD.
