Written by Patrick Hao
58/100
Double Walker represents another entry in the trend of horror movies dealing with the terror of misogyny inflicted on young women that even started before the MeToo movement with films like A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night and The Witch. Just in the last month of this film’s release, Last Night in Soho tackles many of the themes of trauma that is inflicted on young women through chauvinist and abusive behavior. So, does Double Walker, the debut feature from writer/director Colin West, stand out amongst the pack? Unfortunately, no.
That is not to say that Double Walker is a bad movie by any means. The film’s direction and moody style, a mix between David Lowery’s midwestern confinement and Guy Maddin’s dreamscape, offers hints of an exciting future. The star and co-writer, Sylvie Mix, is an intoxicating presence, even if she doesn’t entirely pull off the psychological complexity behind her blank stare.
Sylvie Mix plays an unnamed Ghost, who at death was given the choice between going into the afterlife or roaming her midwestern town for the people responsible for her death. She chose the latter. The film is told with a mixture of flashbacks and voice over narration, adding a layer of dream logic, but also over-busied set up that distracts more than it intrigues. The Ghost lures men in one by one, avenging her own death through theirs. Things are complicated when she meets Jack (Jacob Rice), a seemingly nice man, who tries to help this spectral figure.
In a way, Double Walker is not too dissimilar in structure from Promising Young Woman from last year. And in many ways, both films have the same faults. They both use genre as a delivery method of the important themes, but the weightiness of those themes seems to make them resistant to having too much fun within the genre. Some of the set ups and kills have a good degree of cleverness and technical form that show that West is a talented filmmaker. Similarly, the film’s forays into a dreamlike, afterlife space is quite haunting. But the overarching self-importance holds the film back from being truly spectacular. Double Walker ultimately feels like a good demo reel for its star and director. In fact, West has already wrapped production on his second feature with much bigger stars. If Double Walker is any indication, the future will be bright for him.
Double Walker Trailer
Double Walker will be available on VOD starting 11/12.
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