SKIN AND BONES
Directed by: Larry Fessenden/Written by: Drew McWeeny/Scott Swan
Starring: Doug Jones
SYNOPSIS:
When a cattle herder returns to his farm after being lost in the woods for
days, he just doesn’t seem the same. Soon, we realize that he is in fact
possessed by a terrifying monster, forcing his family to kill their own
husband and father in order to save themselves!
AMMON GILBERT (Rating 1 out of
4):
I’ve been a big fan of all the previous episodes of
FEAR ITSELF this season, but that streak has been broken with the atrocity
of SKIN AND BONES, a boring and stretched out tale of possession and family
drama. Bleh.
Others might have found the cannibalistic mayhem of the
cattleman returning from 10 days in the extreme weather entertaining, but I
found it… boring. Once it was obvious he was possessed by something (about
one commercial break in), I was ready for the episode to end, and yet… it
kept going and going and going.
The saving grace, of course, was the talented Doug
Jones as the possessed dad of two. That guy has mastered the movements of
being creepy, and it was fun watching him do his thing. Other than that…
what a bore!
Even the ‘twist’ of who was whose daddy and all that was
obvious from about midway though. Even the body count and amount of carnage
that was had couldn’t save this one for me.
Others may
have dug it, but for me… it was the lowest point of the season
————————–
ERIC WALKUSKI (Rating 3 out of
4):
Doug Jones is one creepy muthaf*cka! Usually his genial mug is covered in
all kinds of latex and make-up., but in SKIN AND BONES, we’re mostly seeing
the actor behind ABE SAPIEN and FAUN in all his unmasked glory, and he still
manages to bring a convincing monster to the screen.
Granted, as the episode
goes on, Mr. Jones’ Grady becomes more and more grotesque as the Wendigo
within him rears its ugly head, but Jones’ skeletal face certainly makes an
impression even before it becomes aggressively evil.
SKIN AND BONES is one of the better FEAR ITSELF episodes, a
straight-forward chiller well-directed by Larry Fessenden (who has dealt
with Wendigos before), featuring an able cast and good-looking technical
credits up and down.
Unfortunately, SKIN AND BONES ends on an abrupt note, but that’s not out
of the ordinary for FEAR ITSELF, as most episodes seem to have tacked-on
endings that leave the entire experience cold. It’s over before we know it…
That said, this was a fun entry, and I hope it’s not the last. This show
still has promise!
VISIT THE FEAR ITSELF WEBSITE HERE
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