Short Horror Reviews: Workobey Films

With Halloween just around the corner, I thought it would fun to provide my loyal readers with a nice spooky treat for this 31st by reviewing a handful of scary short films. What all these films have in common is that they are all works from the company Workobey Films company, founded by Canadian filmmaker Andrew J.D. Robinson. Having also founded the 15 Second Horror Challenge, Robinson has more than proven his dedication to the horror genre, with Robinson and his company being the mastermind behind the well-crafted Halloween short film, We Know You Are Home.

Without further ado, let's dive in and see how many of Workobey's films will make for good, spooky entertainment this Halloween:

The Becky Carmichael Fan Club:

Seemingly set in the same universe of We Know You Are Home, The Becky Carmichael Fan Club appropriately adopts the former film's aesthetic and expands on it with its longer run time. Following the story of young, aspiring musician Becky Carmichael (Gabrielle Banville), the film takes a stark look at internet culture and how often creators find themselves exploited by followers wishing to live their lives through them.

Gabrielle Banville excels as the troubled web-celebrity, bringing raw emotion as Becky finds herself entangled in a web of obsession and deceit in a performance akin to Juliet Landriault's from We Know You Are Home. Tristan McIntosh and Maissa Houri-Charron share strong chemistry with Banville in their respective roles as Becky's brother Jesse and friendly confidante Amber, with the film's shocking twist putting both of their characters in a vastly different light that will have you questioning them long after the credits roll.

Aesthetically, The Becky Carmichael Club does a lot more at creating a retro vibe than We Know You Are Home, with its anachronistic soundtrack and mood-based use of a black-and-white effect making for a visually and audibly strong view. The ending also wraps things up on an appropriately bleak and thought-provoking note, ending events on the implication of a heartbreaking cycle when it comes to living a life in cyberspace. The pacing is sure to turn off those looking for high-tension scares and at times becomes unnecessarily plodding, but The Becky Carmichael Club remains a strong Halloween watch if you're looking for a more psychological brand of horror to enjoy over some Halloween candy.

Score: 8 out of 10 comfy neck pillows.

A Walk Home Alone:

A short film with a simple premise horror fans are apt to have seen many times before, A Walk Home Alone is a film that actually thrives on that familiarity. With the film opening with a news report about a serial killer targeting women who were last seen walking home alone, viewers are likely to realize instantly that Alice (Maura Stephens) is likely slated for the same fate as soon as we see her walking to her apartment alone and being unknowingly watched by her soon-to-be killer (Jurgen Vollrath).

But as the film progresses and we get a look into this soon-to-be victim's life, A Walk Home Alone shows that it has just as much heart as it does fright. As played by Maura Stephens, Alice is a character you quickly grow to care about as you see the emotional situation she is in with her offscreen boyfriend Brian, with Stephens giving such emotional weight to Alice's struggle that you feel both fear and sadness as you await the inevitable conclusion to come. Add to that a chilling performance given by Jurgen Vollrath as the salesman serial killer, and you have an intense little horror short that is just as likely to bring tears to your eyes as chills up your spine.

Score: 10 out of 10 deleted text messages.

Candle Cove:

Based on the creepypasta of the same name, Candle Cove acts as less of an adaptation or continuation of the original story revolving around a bizarre children's TV show with creepy puppets and more as a condensed version of it. With a run time of just under two minutes, Candle Cove has little time between its introduction and the reveal of the story's twist, which proves to be a detriment in both storytelling and fright-building. The condensation of the original creepypasta also leaves a question as to who the film will appeal to: Viewers who know the story will find see this as old news, and newcomers to the story will find the rushed twist unsatisfying in comparison to the original creeypasta's build-up.

The opening scene of a pair of unnerving puppets and warped soundtrack for the conclusion might be worth a few chills, and both Anne-Carolyne Binette and Tristan McIntosh do what they can in their thin roles. But ultimately, Candle Cove is a short film that flops under the constraints of its length.

Score: 3 out of 10 public access children's programs.

Sightings:

Similar to A Walk Home Alone, Sightings is a horror short that is just as likely to elicit sadness as it does fear. Centering around a pair of sisters (played by Angela Parent and Hayden Rose) worrying about the potential fate of their missing youngest sister, the emotional weight of the situation is carried by Parent and Rose's intense performances. As you watch these women worry about what has become of their sibling, you get the sense that both women realize the worst has likely happened, but can't bring themselves to make it a reality by saying so—making the inevitable conclusion heart wrenching to watch.

Chantal Kloosterman also excels in her brief scenes as the missing sister, allowing the viewer to ponder through her silent emoting and her scenes' ambiguity what exactly happened to her—leading to an unspoken horror that manifests from the viewer's own imagination.

Sightings may not be as frightening as some of other Workobey's features and likely could've worked better with a longer run time, but the real-world horrors and tragedies that it evokes through its story are sure to send bring both understated chills and pangs of emotion.

Score: 7 out of 10 tearful phone calls.

Placebo:

Acting as something of a sequel to The Becky Carmichael Fan Club, Placebo doubles down on the former film's dour tone and adds a generous dose of disturbing to the mix. With the film being a mostly silent one, Placebo relies heavily on sound, visuals, and body language to convey the horror of the situation unfolding.

With an effectively unnerving soundtrack and a similar use of mood-based use of color, Placebo keeps the audience in a permanent sense of dread. Aileigh Karson and Maura Stephens also deliver in their mostly silent performances, with both using their facial expressions to great lengths to show both the horror of the film's events and the underlying tragedy of those events' cause—exploring many of the same themes delved into by the preceding film. For another short horror flick with a message to back up its terror, I recommend watching Placebo as a double feature against The Becky Carmichael Fan Club.

Score: 10 out of 10 hearted autographs.

Something Scary:

In a screencast-set film reminiscent of Unfriended, we watch as video game streamer "GamerGurl" (Aileigh Karson) plays a beta copy she received of a horror video game called Something Scary for her viewers—only to get far more than she bargained for. The YouTube/Twitch aesthetic is unique, with Aileigh Karson's charismatic performance making her believable as someone who would do well as an Internet personality.

Aside from the interesting aesthetic, however, Something Scary is nothing particularly unique of in the realm of web horror. But with a charming lead performance and some effective scares, you could do worse than spending a dark night curled up watching this tale of a Let's Play gone horribly wrong.

Score: 6 out of 10 Rorschach's.

Beauty Sleep:

Being a short film that is heavy on surrealism and completely lacking in a coherent plot, Beauty Sleep is a horror short that almost demands to be watched in the dark under the cover on a dark and stormy night. The distorting imagery and audio all combine in a sort of dread and fear that is best achieved when the viewer is in a dark room and can't tell what might be lurking in the places they can't see. The low build also allows for a sudden scare towards the film's end to be far more effective had there been a plethora of jump scares preceding it.

Maura Stephens once again dominates in this mostly silent film, conveying through body language the feelings of isolation, terror, and melancholy that permeate Beauty Sleep and its focus on the loss of identity. The inherently bizarre tone and lack of story may not appeal to all, but if you want a film to watch on a spooky Halloween night, Beauty Sleep is sure to have you on edge.

Score: 7 out of 10 white masks.

Beauty Marks:

How can such a simple makeup job be so effectively creepy? This question is answered in Beauty Marks, a silent black-and-white horror film that joins Beauty Sleep in being a surreal horror film meant to be watched in the dark. In the light, the simple but nonetheless unnerving makeup on display is merely creepy. In the dark, it's no doubt something that is sure to have your skin crawling.

Melodie Courval and Jolanta Mojsej's performances match their characters' appearances in creepiness, with Courval in particular bringing poignancy to her role as a traumatized young woman who has fallen victim to a disturbingly cruel maniac. The theory I developed that Courval and Mojsej's characters are meant to represent a young girl and her emotionally abusive mother serves to make Beauty Marks all the more disturbed and heartbreaking, with the film's surreal nature opening it up to numerous other interpretations. For a short film that provokes thought as much as it does fear, curl up under the covers with Beauty Marks.

Score: 8 out of 10 eyelid eyes.

Overall:

Apart from the misfire of Candle Cove, the short films in Workobey's repertoire stand out among the endless fray of online horror shorts for their attention to aesthetic, strong performers, and effectiveness in providing chilling stories and atmospheres. To watch all of the short films reviewed here and check out some of Workobey and Andrew J.D. Robinson's other works, check out this playlist.