‘Greywood’s Plot’ review: Dir. Josh Stifter [FrightFest]

Whilst many often focus their attention purely on the big budget productions, the team at FrightFest have always been champions of those that represent the heart of independent filmmaking. Each year they dedicate a screen to their First Blood strand of programming, which celebrates the best new voices on the UK film scene, but they don’t stop there in their support of lower budget productions. So many of the films at this year’s Arrow Video FrightFest event were conceived and created on a shoe-string, brought into life by sheer force of will and passion. One such film is Greywood’s Plot. 

Greywood’s Plot, directed and co-written by Josh Stifter, is one of the purest embraces of the independent spirit of filmmaking at this year’s festival. Made by Stifter and a handful of his closest friends, the movie is a fun and wild ride that wears its love for cinema on its lumberjack shirt sleeve. The enthusiastic and essentially no-budget feature follows a pair of friends, Miles (Keith Radichel) and Dom (Stifter), as they go in search of the mythical chupacabra. Along the way they encounter the strange Doug Greywood (played by co-writer Daniel Degnan), and as their fragile friendship disintegrates, events take an unexpectedly dark turn.  

This is a film whose title has a subtle double meaning. Greywood’s Plot is a film made by the powerful bonds of friendship that tells the bitter story of the ending of a friendship. Dom and Miles have been friends forever, but Miles is clearly getting fed up with Dom’s incessant need for validation, thirst for fame, and interest in the supernatural. Dom is oblivious to Miles’ feelings, being too focused on his own mission in life to look outside of himself. The powder-keg environment of their trek into the woods is enough to spark and seemingly destroy their relationship forever. Eerie setting aside, it’s a relationship dynamic that many encounter in their lives, the term ‘best friend forever’ rarely holds up in reality and an ending of a friendship can be one of the most vicious things to experience.

Stifter and Degnan’s script beautifully captures the characters it has created, each of them, no matter how little screen time they see, has had time and care poured into them. The dialogue is a series of witty, snippy acid laced sarcasm that lights up the screen and has clearly been worked on constantly to achieve the perfect balance. Our crew also form the cast, and whilst some have no prior experience, all deliver commendable performances. Degnan’s Greywood is a standout, his version of the character seemingly channelling the television show version of What We Do in the Shadows’ energy vampire, Colin, during our first encounter. His character changes as his intentions are revealed, but this first meeting is one of the best scenes in the movie.  

Outside of this stark and honest look at relationships, growing up and drifting apart, Greywood’s Plot is a black and white love letter to the zany mad science movies of the fifties, but transplanted into our modern social media obsessed society. It’s a little strange to see modern technology like mobile phones pop up in a black and white film, but the decision to create the film in monochrome works as a respectful homage to the films that inspired the story, whilst also helping smooth some of the rougher aspects of production.

A film that fully embraces the Robert Rodriguez El Mariachi format of working, Greywood’s Plot never shies from reaching for the moon, throwing a ton of practical effects into the mix. A cautious filmmaker would opt to hide more than show, but Stifter and his team of friends have gone all in and their creations are adorably admirable. The fact that they are a little cheap looking works at tapping into the magic of classic b-movie films and works as a positive rather than a negative. 

Greywood’s Plat was reviewed at Arrow Video FrightFest 2021.