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First, the Recap:
Time to think. Would this not often be something we aspire to find the occasion to take advantage of? Reflection can be healing, though it can also be convicting in heart and mind as we ponder past and present actions. However, how much more unnerving is it when the time to think comes at the price of waning sanity? Emily (Charlotte Elizzabeth) is having a very, very bad day. Unceremoniously dropped off in the middle of a remote forest, along with another poor soul (Chantal Brown), left for dead by a serial killer (Fred Smart), her awakening is nothing short of disorienting and traumatic. Initially attempting to simply flee the scene, Emily’s panic and confusion only increases.
Desperate to alleviate her situation, Emily begins to find herself recollecting prior events in her recent life, in doing so having to confront some serious lapses in judgement and decisions which not only impacted or hurt her, but others dear to her as well, including a close friend Tara (Gemma Fisher). The longer Emily’s dilemma of finding a way out of the forest lasts, she begins falling into self blame, all the while trying to remain lucid and focused on her survival, as the physical strains of the situation begin to take a toll in addition to the mental. As hopelessness seems to become her only ally, she discovers potential relief, only to find the road becomes more terrifying before true freedom is gained.
Next, my Mind:
This newest short film effort from indie director/co-writer/co-producer Adam J. Morgan is one that honestly could have sunk into complete and utter cliché when it came to its narrative’s overall premise, as the entire concept of serial killers and girls trying to escape them et al is pretty worn out in many respects. However, instead, Morgan takes the idea and very much effectively turns it into more of a straight-forward, gritty, affecting, character-driven morality tale about the base human instinct to survive and overcome extreme and desolate circumstances, even when the success of such venture appears bleak. The use of varying camera angles to try and emphasize the equally varying obstacles Emily encounters while illustrating the grander magnitude of her plight is well done here, using flashback segments to highlight deeper issues.
Elizzabeth’s performance as Emily took me a minute or so to warm up to, and this isn’t due to poor quality as much as many films of this type tend to be SO overtly over-the-top and OVER-acted, that seeing an actor attempt to play it more realistically actually threw me! This is almost more understated, as Elizzabeth truly portrays Emily as the flat-out normal human being she is whose been thrust into a far less than adequate state of affairs contained within a far less than friendly environment. The wide range of emotional turmoil and literal physical elements Emily has to face are portrayed as one would more expect, with reactions to even the smallest of things causing everything from joy to fear to anger to apathy and beyond, all while striving to not lose her mind entirely and find the way home. Elizzabeth does this very, very well.
Supporting turns by Smart as the deranged, woodlands-based killer is solid for his small amount of actual screen time, but it of course adds the primary catalyst for all events driving the story. Fisher likewise does a fine job as Emily’s best friend Tara, who may no longer consider their BFF status valid anymore! Brown’s part was rather lifeless here, but there was good reason for that, plus an appearance by child actor Lucas Morgan-Stroud is present as well. In total, for this reviewer anyway, “Emily’s Journey” was actually a surprise with its intelligent yet uncomplicated execution, a finale that might be a little expected, but with a human factor that causes the picture as a whole to rise a level above average genre offerings.
As always, this is all for your consideration and comment. Until next time, thank you for reading!
