Amazing Fantasy Fest Coverage
Reset review
The team behind last year’s Demon Behind the Glass is back with another film full of incredible production value and top-notch effect work.
Festival reviews will not contain spoilers
Reset
Directed by Michael Yammine
Written by Michael Yammine
Starring Adam Holley, Catilin Westfall, Tim O’Hearn, Reese Ravencraft and Lorelai Brown
Reset Review
The World Premiere of writer/director Michael Yammine’s Reset highlighted day five of Amazing Fantasy Fest. It debuted following a screening of a delightful animated short called Howl if You Love Me. Yammine was joined by actor Adam Holley, producer Joshua Recene (director of last year’s festival selection Demon Behind the Glass) and other cast/crew members who brought both of these 2 in the Chamber features to life.
Lucas (Adam Holley) has lost his wife and daughter. He’s gained something terrible in return. Creatures continually appear on his property. He believes that their presence holds the key to getting his daughter back.
There are all kinds of sci-fi ideas at work in Reset. Other worldly creatures roam the fields at night. Time distorts in strange ways for people who experience the nightly phenomenon. There’s a void that is difficult to access and harder to comprehend. These concepts allow Reset to have fun with how it tells its story…even if the story itself is bleak. That’s a clever trick that I’m not sure I can readily pull from another example. At its core, Reset is about loss and coming to terms with that loss. On the surface, it’s a gorgeously shot science fiction film that bends your mind just enough to make its story more fun than it sounds while still allowing its themes to resonate. If there’s a word for what this is…I don’t know it.
Adam Holley starred in last year’s Demon Behind the Glass as a similarly obsessed character. He does an extremely impressive job finding an entirely new angle on this one. The performances feel like night and day even though they’re rooted in the same ideas. Wounded men confronted by something unexplainable. His character in Demon was a disgraced journalist who embarks on an investigation into demon lore. Lucas, in Reset, is searching for something more personal. And he’s ready for a reckoning. Holley is so convincing in these two roles I honestly didn’t recognize him on screen as the same actor while watching Reset. It wasn’t until the post-screening Q&A that the penny dropped.
Lucas isn’t alone in his quest. A kind local waitress becomes, literally, trapped in his quest when she steps onto the field believing Lucas’s daughter is talking to her. A strange man enters the loop willingly. Each has a mysterious connection to what’s happening…but we won’t spoil that here. The performances are universally strong.
It wouldn’t be a 2 in the Chamber production if we didn’t talk about the effect work. I don’t know how they do it. I have no concept of how they make movies that look this good and contain the special effects that Reset and Demon Behind the Glass put on screen. It’s as if they’ve discovered a secret to independent filmmaking that they refuse to share with the world. Instead, they use it to make badass looking creatures and show chunks of their flesh flying off during battle. The production values in Reset are as out of this world as whatever is happening on Lucas’s property once night falls.
With an excellent lead performance, ridiculously high production values, and a mystery that keeps you engaged, Reset is another win for the 2 in the Chamber crew. It deftly uses sci-fi hijinks to keep its somber story feeling exciting. Writer/director Michael Yammine shoots a film that feels large despite its (mostly) one setting. These kinds of tricks…juxtaposing small, personal narratives with big ideas and bigger scope amount to high level storytelling. 2 in the Chamber is fast becoming must see independent productions. Can’t wait to see what they create next.
Scare Value
2 in the Chamber is fast becoming known for the quality of their independent productions. Last year’s Demon Behind the Glass showcased excellent effects. Reset puts some things on screen that are downright absurd for the budget. It’s a testament to the crew’s technique that their movies look like this. Adam Holley, who also starred in Demon, finds a completely different take on this determined lead character. There’s some interesting lore…great monsters…and the kind of time distortion twists we all want. Another success.
