WATCH THE FILM HERE
First, the Recap:
Ah, the beauty of taking a nice, leisurely walk through the forest on a peaceful, sunny day. Honestly, this sounds like a day we all wish we might experience ON a DAILY basis, if life would only work out like that. But, when seeking opportunity to get away and find some inner solace, it is exactly this style of escape that often works best for many, and something we perhaps don’t take enough advantage of. After all, what could possibly go wrong? In the serenity of a local woods, a young woman named Sophie (Ivisita Ivanova) is herself enjoying that much needed stroll, taking in the wonder of nature around her, and having peace of mind. However, coming upon a particular tree that has on it a strange symbol, while at its base a strange book with journal-style entries, what ensues upon reading it causes the rest of her time to become anything but serene–and potentially deadly.
Next, my Mind:
There’s always an innate atmosphere of legitimate fright that a horror-based film carries with it, regardless of the specific leanings it takes in order to manifest it. But, the actual EFFECTIVENESS of said ambiance, for this critic anyway, is HIGHLY dependent on what we DON’T see vs. anything blatantly obvious, or at minimum a well-established, logical combination of both. With this 7-minute indie short film from Bulgarian writer/director/editor Teddy Nikolova, writer/producer Miroslav Petkov, producer Slavin Boshnakov, executive producers Natasha Chisdes, Emily Lasater, and Jeremy C. Gersh, plus associate producers Todd Chamberlain, Sherry McCutcheon, Nick Miles, and Horror King Sean, there IS that aforementioned combination, but executed in such a manner as to really present this effort as more of a proof-of-concept for a larger, as-of-yet-untold story as opposed to what I felt one would consider a COMPLETELY autonomous project.
While we can easily argue that the film angles towards several standard horror film tropes, or if anything, at least tends towards those types of moments where we’re likely to delve into very common “NO! Don’t go in there!!” or “PLEASE…HEED the warnings!!” territory, the narrative conveyed that finds a young woman, alone, in the woods, just trying to enjoy life who, chancing upon a tree and book with enigmatic, occult-like symbols and reading desperate cautions to just leave it alone but then begins hearing a hauntingly eerie whisper (hence, the film’s title) that leads her into growing “potentially could have been–no–simply COULD have been avoided!” instances actually HAS promise and IS, at least for me, quite unsettling and creepy. As the film progresses, we’re entreated to brief flashes of what could really be unfolding and the malignant forces behind it, yet still only provided so much before the finale that has some wonderfully clever moments and plenty of conjecture that would possibly BE the key that more IS to come in the future, including a post-credits scene to wrap things up. Whether this continuation occurs–we wait and see.
On the surface, the film is visually simplistic, which works perfectly fine for the narrative, as it isn’t necessary to get too intricate with straightforward, supernaturally-infused horror, as it relies more on those previously indicated hints at what ominous entities are behind everything to directly stand out through the images our eyes take in. I won’t necessarily say that the total aura of tension and build-up of it was present here as much as I personally prefer within this style of horror, but there’s at least enough to elicit some degree of chills. Again, this kind of film benefits from standards like jump scares and overtly evoking our fear of what we cannot visually see but could be taken over by, etc. It IS freaky if you put yourself IN the situation being portrayed, and so that’s why I am saying that this film DOES have a LOT of means to become much more than what we’re initially watching. It firmly cements its narrative in your mind, and there’s just SOMETHING about the whole menacing/sinister whispering thing that constantly gets me every time. But, THAT is what I WANT.
Suffice it to say, actress Ivanova gets to do something that, overall, is quite rare in any film, short or feature length–be the only member of the cast! Of course, then we could surmise that ALL the pressure to perform is now ON her in order to carry the film, and this critic personally feels she did an absolutely admirable job here. Her role portrayed here is Sophie, a young woman who’s just wanting to relish relaxation time via taking a casual hike through a secluded forest on a beautiful day. This has been accomplished without fault until she happens upon one of the trees there that has been oddly and rather enigmatically marked with an unknown symbol. Not until she finds the journal at the foot of the tree does it become clearer that what she’s innocently stumbled upon is a harbinger for a dark past and even darker dealings that suddenly become her reality. As always, will curiosity end up killing the figurative cat?
What I appreciated about Ivanova’s performance was the seriously (MAYBE just a little TOO much, though) understated demeanor the character possesses, given the possible forewarnings and subsequent occurrences that Sophie finds herself (somewhat) involuntarily involved with that would signal impending troubles. There needed to be even a SLIGHTLY more palpable sense of dread or fear arising within her that would have suited things a little better. But again, as a whole, I applaud Ivanova for also not OVERacting had events depicted REALLY gone overboard in the film. Always room for improvement in one’s chosen art form, and I was still satisfied with Ivanova’s delivery via almost no dialogue to speak of. So, in total, “The Whisper” represents the heart of an indie filmmaker looking to create something that can now be expanded on to a grander degree, and does tease that as such. It’s a relatively mild scare-fest that holds the PROMISE of much more to be explored and presented, which I likewise hope gets to occur. In the meantime, good people, just use better judgement when hearing baleful whispers calling your name.
STAR RATING (out of 5):
As always, this is all for your consideration and comment. Until next time, thank you for reading!
