#6: Residue (2017)

The pickings are slim with my informal “rules” for selecting the 10 new horror movies I’m watching this month. First and foremost, the movies have to be available through my Roku on the three services I subscribe to: Amazon, Hulu, and Netflix. I usually view movies multiple times in order to review. Usually. If I don’t like the movie, I either stop watching (i.e., Hell House LLC) or don’t re-watch (i.e., Oculus). I also want to watch the film as the director intended; therefore, I don’t review movies playing on cable. I may watch a movie on cable and then re-watch it on a streaming service to write the review. Thus far I have been able to avoid renting movies, but that changes with #10. Needless to say, my goal was to experience predominantly low-budget horror movies that suffered from small PR budgets. My hope was to share some of the gems I uncovered.

Tonight’s offering introduced me to the horror-noir sub-genre. The horror-noir film is atmospheric and includes a private investigator. Residue (2017) fits the bill.

Luke Hardy (played by James Clayton) is a down-on-his-luck P.I. who takes possession of an evil book from a distant land. The enchanted book places him and his daughter, who conveniently needs a place to crash, in danger. Writer/director Rusty Nixon adds enough technological nuances to alert the reader that this is a futuristic film, as well.

Devoid of bloated budgets and overused CGI effects, the film relies on dialogue and acting—you know, elements of the craft. Nixon does well.

The film had a Sin City feel with the editing and intrigue. Make no mistake. This film is not based on a comic series; it merely feels like it does.

Nixon paced the movie well. The actors, especially the supporting ones, excelled. It’s more of a time-travel story with aspects of horror instead of a true slasher pic. Still, it’s worth viewing. It will round out the horror offerings.

The movie runs 82 minutes long and is not rated since it was distributed as a VOD (video on demand).