Pandemonium

There’s not much of a market for short films.  Even the Academy Award nominated shorts, which get some theatrical play, are little more than auditions for directors looking for feature work.  But like a short story collection in the literary world, an anthology film is an entirely different experience, offering viewers a buffet of cinematic flavors…and filmmakers a better hit-to-miss ratio.  Pandemonium (2023) isn’t exactly an anthology by design, but production circumstances wound up fitting the format quite nicely as a fog-shrouded wraparound segment bookends two powerful stand-alone films. 

After waking up to the aftermath of a car crash on a misty mountain road, Nathan discovers he’s stuck in some sort of purgatory…and he’s not alone.  Daniel, also involved in the crash, explains their situation and suggests they’re meant to use the two doors that have mysteriously appeared, one accompanied by a heavenly chorus, the other screams of the damned.  

 

From here, Pandemonium jumps into its first self-contained story concerning Nina, a psychologically unhinged 10-year-old who discovers her parents murdered on the living room floor.  She lays the blame on her pet monster, a deformed giant who lives in the wine cellar.  But Nina’s initial excitement at her new life of freedom begins to crack as reality begins to push its way into her escapist dream world.

 

Next, we meet Julia, a work obsessed single mother who discovers her daughter has committed suicide.  But her guilt pushes her from denial to delirium, covering up the death while her fractured psyche struggles to cope.  And finally, we return to Nathan from the opening chapter, now on a guided tour of hell and forced to confront an eternity of suffering…unless we gets one lucky break.

 

Pandemonium might not present itself as straight-forward genre entertainment in the way of old Amicus horror films of the ‘60s and ‘70s, but it’s those moral complexities that make it so interesting.  Written and directed by monoymous French filmmaker Quarxx, the film grabs your attention from the opening frame, staging a Twilight Zone meets Silent Hill vision of the afterlife that immediately pulls the viewer in.  Each story becomes progressively more nihilistic, with dollops of dark humor along the way to relive the pressure, headed towards a view of the human condition that’s pitch black.  Yet, the film itself is gorgeous to look at and features some of the most stunning make-up designs not produced by Rick Baker you’ve ever seen! 

 

Arrow Video’s limited-edition Blu-ray is a stunner with interviews from Quarxx, FX supervisor Olivier Afonso and footage from the 2023 premiere.  Included but not available for review are a double-sided fold-out poster and illustrated collector’s booklet.

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