Someone's Knocking at the Door

Some drug induced shock tactics can't save, or paper over the cracks. Bizarre and disturbing are usually (at least) interesting in the movies but this one tries way to hard and any fantastic notions are quickly replaced by rape and graphic violence.

The plot: Medical students are haunted by demonic serial rapists.

This was an interesting movie. I'm not sure that I could say that I actually liked it, though. It straddled the line between postmodern, avant-garde film and low budget, exploitation trash. People who are expecting a straight-up horror movie will probably be offended or, even worse, bored out of their minds. The plot is all over the place, involving experimental drugs that induce an near-death experience, serial rapists, demonic possession, a police investigation, and perverted medical students.

I'm not entirely certain what Chad Ferrin's point is, but, as far as I can tell, he's mocking Jacob's Ladder, Flatliners, Scream, and other late 80s / early 90s horror movies. He also seems to be influenced by Frank Henenlotter and Lloyd Kaufman, with lots of over-the-top, disturbing, and disgusting content thrown in, just to offend people. I'll admit, he did actually get my attention, and I thought I was pretty jaded. There are some pretty nasty rape scenes, which are generally played for black humor. Most of the characters are despicable, and the rest are dumbasses. If you're the kind of person who complains about movies not having a likable protagonist, you should definitely avoid this one.

Movies like SKATD often intentionally court as much controversy as they can muster, in order to boost their publicity. Ambivalence is the only reaction that can really harm them. Unfortunately, my own reaction was somewhat ambivalent. I'm tempted to say that it was different, wild, crazy, offensive, or disturbing, but, really, I'm just not sure how much of that is true. However, it's an interesting experiment, and, even if it does fail, it fails in a way that's interesting. I just wish I could figure out with 100% certainty whether this was meant to be parody, homage, or pastiche. Maybe it was meant to be all of them, at the same time. Or it could be that I'm seriously overthinking the whole thing, and it was never meant to be more than low budget trash.

Troma fans may want to check it out, but most other people will probably hate it.

Well, first of all I have to say that I made it roughly three-quarters through the movie, then I gave up out of boredom.

Having said that, let's get down to business. OK, this movie was driven by a very weak storyline, revolving around people's usage of some weird drug. A drug that apparently caused deadly hallucinations, or were they actually hallucinations? (insert your own scary music here!) ... No! No! No! It just didn't work. The storyline was boring and uneventful, and failed to captivate.

What worked in the movie was the overall weirdness that was in almost every single frame. From the way the movie was shot and cut together, to the quirky characters and situations. A lot of them were quite far out there, and bordering on being too much. But oddly enough, in a strange way, it worked well enough for the movie.

Some of the cast actually managed to pull off adequate performances, though there were some where you just sat there and stared blankly at the screen, wondering how that person ever made it past screening.

The movie went on at a very slow pace, with very little happening along the way. Sure, it tried to build up some suspense, but there were no climaxes along the way. You just sat there with a hope for something to happen, but were left with a flaccid sense of deprivation. The movie was just too boring and uneventful for me, and I had to give up on it. And I know that I will not be returning to it at a later time to try to finish it or to give it a second chance. My life is simply too short for these types of movies. I gave it a shot, and it didn't impress me.

Oh, and before I forget, there were a couple of brutal scenes in the movie, that might actually be offensive to some people, so be warned about that.

WOW! Chad Ferrin has created a film that has to be seen to be believed. Someone's Knocking at the Door is by far the most depraved, weird, and interesting movie I have seen in a very long time.

This is extreme to the max, so it is NOT recommended for Children or adults that have a weak stomach. The thing that I admire most about Chad Ferrin is the fact that he isn't afraid to go that extra step further in provocation.

Everything about the film is unique. From the atmosphere, to the kills, to the serial killers, and even the main characters, whose nightmare is only just beginning.

There is a twist that many people have disliked, but I must say that I thought it worked fine! Chad Ferrin never lets you as at the viewer, feel in control and its that unpredictability that makes it work!

Although it has problems here and there, the sheer volume of extreme terror makes it worth the effort to see!

Based on the description, Someone's Knocking at the Door sounded like a good movie. Unfortunately, it isn't. There are no edge-of-your-seat moments and the ending is a huge letdown. Basically, this movie is nothing more than an anti-drug message wrapped up in a bunch of what-the-@*&#. Sure there is blood and nudity, but the nudity isn't even appealing. The acting is decent but the story is awful. SKATD had so much potential if it had focused on the villains pursuit of the college students. But instead it jumped too soon into the attacks and the whole thing got boring fast. Don't waste your time. If you want an anti-drug message search YouTube for anti-drug PSA produced by MTV during the 1980s.