Film #22 — 1/1 Canadian Film; 9/9 Decades
By C. Ramsay
Featuring a premise that’s always fun to see new approaches to—an isolated group of people being slowly picked off by something or someone in an extremely remote area—Black Mountain Side is unfortunately unsuccessful in its addition to the catalogue. Sticking relentlessly to its slow pace, which serves more to simply wait out the story beats than it does to contribute to the atmosphere, an attempt is made to keep attention on the characters, but the mediocre acting means the film is constantly shoving a stick into its own spokes.
The effort is felt right off the bat, and while thought behind the camerawork is appreciated, every single shot feels overly planned and meant to represent some deeper meaning, which becomes distracting very quickly. It seems like there was indecision around whether the camerawork should make the audience feel like a fly on the wall, held hostage to witness the events but helpless to do anything about them, or a member of the crew, equally at risk to what lurks in the shadows. Though it’s to be expected that John Carpenter’s The Thing would be inescapable for inspiration to some extent, certain characters here are stylized so similarly that a couple of the actors even have a physical resemblance through their physical features, facial hair, clothing, and mannerisms, which further works to remove the viewer from the moment rather than linking them to it.
The use of chapter breaks to inform the audience of the timeline is also hindering, as in this case they’re a weak attempt at manufacturing tension by reinforcing a countdown that doesn’t matter in the grand scheme of the film’s events. If anything, their presence grounds the audience when we should instead be feeling untethered and disoriented to best relate to the characters. The artificial sense of doom that’s created through the chapter breaks is on par with Szostakiwskyj’s prioritization of shock value, though even this isn’t nestled into the remainder of the film in meaningful ways. It often seems out of place because there’s nothing else to it than the initial shock, and the scene usually ends shortly after, pivoting to something else entirely. The panic of the characters, key moments, and exposition all escalate at different paces, and because of this the crucial scenes end up feeling like they’re just floating puzzle pieces that don’t fit nicely into a comprehensive whole. There’s no depth to how the characters are feeling outside of the extremity of their immediate emotional reactions. It feels like watching a simulated model of a scenario being run rather than being a part of something immersive.
On a positive note, the locations are beautiful and are utilized well. Some of the shots are gorgeous and stand out against the dread of the situation the characters are in, and the set design is well-thought out, particularly in the small details of how the archaeological artefacts and instruments are stored throughout the cabins (often not). The lack of score, with a preference for either complete quiet or low, humming ambience, is effective in making the environment feel relatable to the viewer. The lighting is balanced and moody when it needs to be, and it’s never a struggle to see what’s happening in the dark unless it’s a deliberate choice to temporarily obscure something. There’s also a brief one-shot sequence that’s notable, being only as long as it needs to be and its inclusion making sense technically. It by far outshines the camerawork in other scenes, so while there are things to appreciate, it’s disappointing that that quality isn’t present for more of the film. There are good bones here, but they’re for the most part unassembled, and talking about the story on its own feels more enjoyable than attempting a rewatch.
Star rating (/5): ★★½
Recommend?: Worth checking out