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Home Entertainment: ‘Stay Out Of The Attic’ digital review

Arriving on Shudder this week.

A trio of removal workers undertake the ultimate nightmare job in the latest Shudder Original title, Stay Out of the Attic. From the moment Imani (Morgan Alexandria), her boss, Schillinger (Ryan Francis), and new recruit, Carlos (Bryce Fernelius), arrive at the property of old eccentric Verne (Michael Flynn), it’s clear that something isn’t right. The job isn’t exactly as described; Vern is insistent on bringing the deadline forwards meaning the only way to finish the task in time is to work overnight. Vern does however offer to pay them very handsomely for their extra time and so the trio reluctantly agree. Given strict instructions that they focus only on the main part of the house and leave both the basement and attic alone, they get to work. Then after uncovering some rather disturbing reading material, they quickly realise that Vern isn’t quite what he appears to be and before long they find themselves in a bitter battle to survive till dawn.

Stay Out of the Attic gets off to a great start. The easy back and forth chemistry between our three piece removal team makes for very entertaining viewing. Conversations, especially expositional ones, that set up relationship dynamics often feel horribly clunky and forced, but here they manage to flow in a more realistic way. That’s not to say that the film strives for authenticity and realism, on the contrary, there’s a heightened air to the performances and environment, but there’s nothing worse than a cast of characters that have no tangible connections. The brunt of the opening third spends time exploring their dynamics and interactions with one another, setting up each of their personal histories, aspirations, and motivations, to get the job done. It’s a move that pays off later; when the insanity is unleashed, we’re invested in who these people are. Director Jerren Lauder and his writing team, elevate them above the typical disposable genre cannon-fodder. 

Unfortunately, after an initial high, the film quickly falls into tired territory, playing into all the expected tropes. Worse still, the film begins to suffer from an identity crisis. This quandary leaves the film flailing between mad science, torture porn, and political and societal commentary. By the time it corrects itself and finds a path to stick on, we’re already in the final moments. It’s an expected and common mistake that most first-time feature directors make, and one that is entirely forgivable as, outside of this, Lauder demonstrates a talent worth nurturing. His eye for gore is especially gruesome, and the film features a rather spectacular eye-watering moment that wouldn’t look out of place in Hostel

A film not quite sure of what it wants to be or say, Stay Out of the Attic nonetheless manages to be solid enough to hold your attention for it’s svelte duration.

Stay Out of the Attic is available on Shudder now. 

Stay Out of the Attic

Kat Hughes

Stay Out of the Attic

Summary

Likely one that is purely for the die-hard genre aficionados, Stay Out of the Attic starts well, but gets dragged down by an unfortunate identity crisis along the way. 

3

Kat Hughes is a UK born film critic and interviewer who has a passion for horror films. An editor for THN, Kat is also a Rotten Tomatoes Approved Critic. She has bylines with Ghouls Magazine, Arrow Video, Film Stories, Certified Forgotten and FILMHOUNDS and has had essays published in home entertainment releases by Vinegar Syndrome and Second Sight. When not writing about horror, Kat hosts micro podcast Movies with Mummy along with her five-year-old daughter.

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