Necrologies (2018)

Directed by: Fabien Chombart, Guillaume Defare, Nathalie Epoque, François Message, Alexis Wawerka | 75 minutes | fantasy, horror | Actors: Jean-Claude Dreyfus, Sophie Jarmouni, Francesco Porcelli, David Faure, Sabine Rosoli, Alissia Esteve, François Gelay, Christian Chauvaud, Syla de Rawsky, Apolline Martinelli, Stéphane Deleau, Linnea Quigley, Jérôme Soufflet, Erik Février, Fabrice Colson

As inspiration and setting for one of his video contributions, horror enthusiast and vlogger Ludovic enters a graveyard under the blanket of nighttime darkness. But he is caught by the graveyard keeper. The eccentric figure asks Ludovic to come inside and listen to various horror stories recorded in an old book.

Making an interesting horror film on a budget is an artisanal art form not overly mastered by many filmmakers. ‘Nécrologies’ is a brave attempt at making an indie horror film that does more than just color within the lines. This French piece is an anthology and consists of five separate stories told by the sinister graveyard keeper.

As can be expected, the quality of the stories varies. The first story, in which a young woman is harassed by a caller who is as intrusive as it is frightening, initially seems to turn into a routine and unuplifting exercise, but is saved by a surprising ending. But it is especially the stories three and four that stand out. ‘Le retour des hommes-lézards’ causes a stir because of its eccentricity, uncompromising and originality. Despite the somewhat cheap-looking effects, ‘Une affaire d’enfer’ is a wonderful and bizarre piece with a high ‘Gremlin content’. An enjoyable rarity that stays with the viewer for a while.

The end result of this five-part is a creative mixture of horror and fantasy that serves various tastes. Lovers of blood and gore are regularly catered for, while the creators have also thought of the adepts of more classic ghost stories. The acting meets the expectations of a vague and fairly unknown horror production: not too special, but rarely dramatically bad. Jean-Claude Dreyfus is a positive exception and delivers a wonderfully grim and theatrical display as the eccentric graveyard keeper.

‘Nécrologies’ is not a world film, but it is an entertaining and stubborn piece that has a certain charm that will please many horror fans. This film is well worth a watch if you want something different from the usual Hollywood horror, often devoid of any originality.