Director: Brain Feeney
Writer: Brain Feeney and John Ross
Staring: Alisha Seaton, Melissa Lee, Jeannie Bolet, Angela Landis, and Judy Clement
Released: 2009
Studio: Lead Balloon
Web Site: http://www.leadballoonpictures.com/projects/the-echo-game
The Echo Game is the feature length debut from writer/director Brian Feeney. It’s a paranormal thriller that revolves around ESP and a murderous plot to obtain these powers. Starring Alisha Seaton as April Reilly. A woman whose life is thrown into peril when she receives a letter from her former lover, Rachel, who supposed died 10 years earlier. April’s daughter Sarah, played by Melissa Lee, starts having psychic visions of the now truly deceased Rachel (Angela Landis). These visions and powers put Sarah on the radar of Rachel’s killers lead by Anne Cassavettes (Judy Clement). Anne wants Sarah’s powers and will stop at nothing to get them.
The film is wonderfully shot with nice attention paid to color and mood. Feeney creates a great atmosphere here. The pacing keeps the viewer engaged, building nicely, flowing from intrigue into action. My only is gripe is that the end felt a bit rushed. I would have like to have seen more between Sarah and Anne. More psychic cat and mouse as it were. Very strong performances from Alisha Seaton, and Melissa Lee keep the believability intacted when a few of the other performances were a tad stilted. A strong script and well developed characters also builds the believability. These are characters you end up caring about and pulling for. The story of the “Echo” project is something I want to know more about. It would have been neat to see it in flashbacks. Or maybe a prequel? A creepy upstate boarding school for psychic kids, hmm…
This is not a slasher flick, however there are some very nice bloody FX. The two that really pop in my mind are the knife thru the hand and one thru the back of the head. Also in the gore department, this film has a well done baseball bat beating. Always good fun. I thought it was a fun and nice touch that April’s current girlfriend Casey, played skillfully by Jeannie Bolet, works at an FX company called “Gore Girls”. I was also very happy to see that most of the FX were done practically. Practicality always lends itself to a heightened since of believability, when done right, and this film dose it right. There is on scene in particular when Sarah is in the hospital and is talking with a spirit. It’s a tight shot on Sarah’s eye and you can see the reflection of the spirit inside. This is something many would just do in post, but not here. It’s done right then and it plays off very well.
Another aspect I must mention here is the music. The score of The Echo Game is one of it’s stars. It creates an atmosphere all on it’s own and strengthens Feeney’s great visual feel. Ranging from happy and comforting to eerie and tense. Composer Austin Wintory shows a great talent here. I look forward to hearing more from him.
The Echo Game is a fun ride with a strong story and a good core cast. Brian Feeney has shown that he can do a full length feature and do it well. He has a great eye for shot placement and color. He is also a very adept story teller. I hope to see more from him soon. Sarah says in the film “Don’t play the echo game.” I disagree I say do play The Echo Game.
3/5
