Shifted review.
Shifted blends two genres to create a single, interesting, vision. Zombie-like creatures trap people inside of a house…and murders inside the house give us a whodunnit. I never knew we needed this mashup in our lives…but I’m glad we got it.
New movie reviews will not contain spoilers.
Streaming exclusively on Screambox April 18, 2023
Shifted
Directed Adrian Konstant
Written by Jason T. Green and Adrian Konstant
Starring Micael Wurtz, Derek Lackenbauer, Victoria Dunsmore, Brian Otto, Alyssa Anne Blasak and Zach Parsons
Shifted Review
What makes Shifted more interesting than a standard whodunnit is the circumstances with which the characters find themselves confined to their home. A (basically) zombie apocalypse has broken out. I say basically because these undead have some crazier things going on than shambling and moaning for brains. You’re not going to run around these monsters…if they see you you’re pretty much done for. Oh…and for extra fun spider like tentacles come out of their freaking mouths. That’s what awaits our cast of characters just outside their door. Which makes it that much worse when there appears to be a killer in their midst.
A zombie whodunnit wasn’t something that I thought we would ever see. Thankfully co-writer/director Adrian Konstant thought we needed to. He was right. Shifted combines two well tread subgenres to create something fresh.
It’s a testament to the cast and script that Shifted sustains its forward momentum. It could have easily been a slow, plodding movie…but it is quite the opposite. It’s a testament to Konstant’s direction that it maintains its sense of dread just as long. We get some time outside of the house…whether that be glimpses of the outside world or in flashbacks to the characters’ lives pre-monsters…but this is essentially a one setting story.
There are so many ways that a one setting independent production can fall apart. If you don’t have a solid script and talented actors…you’re going to get into trouble. Shifted has these things and is able to use that base to deliver an increasingly engaging movie.
You’d be forgiven if watching Shifted calls to mind the George A. Romero classic Night of the Living Dead. That too was a largely one setting independent production where people are forced to work together while a zombie outbreak is happening outside. This time, however, it’s less about the monsters attempting to get in…and more about the monster that’s already inside.
The two levels of pervasive threats make Shifted a tense ride. When a stranger breaks into the house seeking refuge at gunpoint…it only adds to the stress already pulling apart the huddled together neighbors. Character development is front and center in Shifted. We get to know these trapped characters over the course of the runtime…including brief flashes to before they found themselves in this seemingly unwinnable situation.
There is drama aplenty inside of their barely fortified house. Enough to fill a soap opera in a lighter toned story. The stress of the world inevitably brings everything to the forefront, constantly threatening the uneasy alliance of the group. Their best case scenario is surviving each other while not being noticed by the roaming dead outside. One day…the former falls apart. Someone has been murdered…and it wasn’t by a zombie. The latter feels inevitable too. You don’t put spider mouthed zombies out there if you aren’t going to use them. Shifted is a ticking clock with a bigger ticking clock beating behind it.
It’s all very effective. And then it ends. Or, perhaps…it’s better described as stops. It’s the oddest thing in Shifted. There is resolution to the whodunnit…and payoff to the zombies outside too. Everything feels headed to the final showdown…and then the credits start to roll. To be clear…they roll over the movie as it continues to play. After a few minutes of extra story…the movie does end…in an oddly unsatisfying way.
Despite the movie already having paid off most of the things that it has set up…it dangles one final carrot in front of you and then leaves it dangling. It’s an odd creative choice in a movie that had to that point been strong and confident in its storytelling. It feels like they didn’t know how to end the movie…and with the credits rolling over the film…like they didn’t know where the movie ended either. It doesn’t undo all the good work done before it…but it does leave a strange final impression.
That out of the way, Shifted is an interesting watch. Fleshed out characters trapped with an unknown monster inside by the known monsters outside. A great pace and consistent tone deliver a unique experience inside comfortable trappings. The cast are given the script and time to create realistic characters and complex relationships. Doom both big and small awaiting them behind every door.
Scare Value
The whodunnit aspect of Shifted works better as a dramatic device than a mystery. The characters not knowing what is happening gives the story its momentum. The concept of a killer in our midst while monsters roam the outside is a fresh and exciting one. The cast is up to the challenge and the story keeps a nice pace. An odd creative choice at the end of the movie will likely prove divisive…but by that point we’ve already had a lot to enjoy.
3.5/5
Shifted Link
Streaming on Screambox
Shifted Trailer
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