Panic Fest 2025 Coverage
Shadow Reaper review
An interesting format that largely succeeds…when it takes the time to flesh things out.
Festival reviews will not contain spoilers.

Shadow Reaper
Directed by Richard Terrasi
Written by Richard Terrasi
Starring Atlas Xavior, Apollo Michael, Michael J. Widger, Kevin Losani, Tim Whalen, Bella Daniella and Jordan Lusk
Shadow Reaper Review
Shadow Reaper is a found footage movie that has a strong idea of how to make that work to its advantage. The footage in question is the raw video of a documentary being shot about a local legend. It involves a lengthy re-enactment segment bookended by added lore from different time periods. The bulk of Shadow Reaper is so effective that it makes the rushed feeling of the sections that surround it stand out in a bad way. The concept of documentary filmmakers doomed by their own investigation is a good one. Shadow Reaper treats it more like an afterthought than the clever throughline that it should be.
William Bradshaw and his fellow documentarians Gus Smith and Mike Stevens are going to die. We know that from the start of Shadow Reaper. The story they’re telling is going to catch up to them. An investigation into a series of murders in a small town will lead to their demise. I just put about as much effort into making that relevant to Shadow Reaper as the film itself does. It mentions it a few times. Ultimately…it comes true to provide an ending to the film itself. But that’s about the extent of its importance to the movie.
It’s a baffling choice, really. Shadow Reaper clocks in at a slim 70 minutes or so. It certainly has the time to flesh out the wraparound story…and stated purpose…of the film. We’re watching their lost footage. But it’s barely about them. This isn’t the only time that Shadow Reaper chooses to shortchange an element of its story. While most of the film is spent watching a re-enactment of a fictional murder case involving ten-year-old Matthew Leary. Before we get to that, however, Shadow Reaper takes us back to 1922 for another murder that will connect to the Leary case. It’s a fun way to extend the myth…but it’s just as rushed as the fate of the documentarians.
That last part is more understandable. Bradshaw and company were making a documentary about the Leary case. Providing a quick bit of historical lore makes sense…and works well. The fate of Bradshaw and his crew, however, is bigger in the context of what we’re watching. The Leary documentary isn’t the drawing interest of Shadow Reaper. The inevitable deaths of Bradshaw and his crew are. Yes, it can narratively work as a simple “this is their last footage” concept…and that footage wouldn’t be about them because they don’t know that they’re going to become the point of their own investigation. But that’s not how movies work, is it? The subjects we’re meant to care about remain mostly unseen throughout Shadow Reaper. What connection to their fate are we supposed to have?
I’m not suggesting that Shadow Reaper scraps what it is to shift focus where it doesn’t belong from Bradshaw’s perspective. What I am suggesting is that this is purported to be raw footage. Surely the filmmakers would exist to a more extensive level in unedited footage they’ve shot themselves. It isn’t the concept that’s missing the idea…it’s the execution. A doomed documentary comprised of unfinished footage shouldn’t spend most of its time providing a re-enactment of something else. At the very least…there should be far more interludes from the damned documentarians building to their inevitable demise.
This wouldn’t be such a point of frustration if Shadow Reaper wasn’t very effective at what it does choose to do. The Matthew Leary story is a good one. The re-enactment features several strong moments of horror. It’s an interesting story, yes…aided by the brief 1922 pit stop, that keeps you engaged. In the context of what Shadow Reaper does well and concentrates its energy on…the fate of William Bradshaw and his crew feels almost completely tacked on and inconsequential. Like a hat on a hat. Like someone decided that Shadow Reaper needed an extra element on top of the Matthew Leary story…and then didn’t bother to build one up.
Regardless of how Shadow Reaper wants to position itself…it would be unfair to ignore how fun the Matthew Leary re-enactments are. Spooky stuff happens to a kid who has unleashed a local legend tied to that 1922 interlude. It’s cool stuff. It’s enjoyable stuff. If you need it to…it even makes a basic amount of sense to show the legend continuing into the making of the documentary.
It is, however, impossible to feel like Shadow Reaper took enough time or effort to make the story of William Bradshaw and his crew feel as interesting or relevant as the film’s plot summary would make you believe. The concept and the story rarely feel as if they exist on the same page. A little more build into the events that will befall Bradshaw would have upped the pervading sense of dread…locking in an even more exciting tone to surround its effective, and lengthy, midsection.
Scare Value
Shadow Reaper works best when it takes the time to flesh out its creation. The bulk of the story centers on just one of the leads in the case…and is easily the strongest aspect of the film. While other parts of the investigation lend a bigger scope to the story…the ultimate payoff feels rushed and almost tacked on. The fate of the film crew could have been built up better throughout Shadow Reaper…making the entire project feel as relevant as its finest parts.