'The Gallows' Reviews: Plenty of Rope to Hang Itself
The most frightening thing about "The Gallows" is the horror flick's reviews.
On the night ahead of a small town high school stage play's debut, a group of teens attempt to sabotage the production, which pays a nod to a former student whose life ended 20 years earlier at their school when a horrific prop malfunction caused his death.
It tells the story in a whorishly recycled found-footage format a la 1999's "The Blair Witch Project," but for many reviews the familiar trope in "The Gallows" left them hanging, according to critics.
"The Gallows was shot as a found footage film, an overused format that at this point requires real ingenuity to stave off boredom. Unfortunately, writer-directors Travis Cluff and Chris Lofling aren’t the guys to hotwire this style into something interesting" -Adam Nayman, National Post
"All the ugly, shaky, night-vision camerawork in the world will not make it seem fresh. Or remotely scary. It might help if there were any people worth rooting for. But 'The Gallows' gives us four almost equally unsympathetic characters" -Stephen Witty, New York Daily News
"Even by the modest standards of the genre, the ending is jaw-droppingly ridiculous." -Lou Lumineck, New York Post
Starring a fresh-faced cast that includes Cassidy Gifford -- whose celebrity parents are TV host Kathie Lee and NFL legend Frank Gifford -- Pfeifer Brown, Ryan Shoos and Reese Mishler, "The Gallows" features relatively unknown and unseasoned actors - and it is painfully obvious on screen, according to some reviewers.
"Lofing and Cluff aren't great writers: Their plot is a hoot, but not a particularly funny hoot. As directors, they make their young cast improvise a lot of the dialogue — a skill that is beyond the reach of most of these actors. They say, 'What the hell?' and 'Dude!' more than they might if they had a proper script" --Tim Appelo, The Wrap
"The Gallows is just another cheapo mock-doc fright flight, shakily trailing a gaggle of attractive, screaming nobodies as nooses literal and otherwise tighten around their throats" -A.A. Dowd, The A.V. Club
Writer/director duo Travis Cluff and Chris Lofing made their dreams a reality after signing a deal with Warner Bros. to distribute their bare bones budget film to theaters worldwide. "The Gallows" rolls out in theaters on July 10. Watch the trailer below:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F_8OKImO2pc
