SHELBY OAKS

Shelby Oaks is competently crafted from a technical perspective by Chris Stuckmann in his feature film debut, using the building blocks of the horror genre to great effect to develop an at times disturbing film, but not even the valiant efforts of lead actress Camille Sullivan can save Shelby Oaks from its screenplay’s shortcomings that underestimates the audience’s intelligence to follow the film’s central mystery.

Some actors make the leap to directing films after spending years on set and seeing the director work in real time. So why can’t other players in the movie industry make the same jump to the director seat? For years Chris Stuckmann has reviewed films on YouTube, both opening the door for aspiring film critics to start giving their own film reviews online and inspiring a new generation of movie lovers among those who tuned into his regular video reviews. After a record breaking Kickstarter campaign for a horror film, raising over one million dollars from fans of Stuckmann’s in March 2022, production began and wrapped in under a month on his feature film debut. But that didn’t stop Shelby Oaks from being the little indie film that could, catching the attention of Mike Flanagan and him boarding the project as an executive producer, a festival premiere last year at the Fantasia Film Festival, and being picked up for distribution by Neon, and now it is finally releasing wide for all of Stuckmann's backers and fans to experience. It’s evident from the opening sequence and from everything that follows that Stuckmann has an eye for directing, creating both an eerie atmosphere that creates an uncomfortable environment for the story to unfold in and elicits a strong performance from his leading actress Camille Sullivan, but as the film progresses, it becomes clear that his writing is the film’s biggest detractor that prevents Shelby Oaks from being the impressive feature debut that one may have hoped for from Stuckmann.

What happened to Riley Brennan? That is the central mystery at the heart of Shelby Oaks, and the film wastes no time engulfing audiences in it. Starting the film off with a documentary segment giving the history of Riley Brennan, her disappearance, and her connection to the abandoned town of Shelby Oaks, the found footage aspect of the film immediately ensnares the audience’s attention. Creating a real life feeling that evokes the marketing campaign of The Blair Witch Project, both thematically and due to its use of found footage, Stuckmann begins the film with an undeniable sense of intrigue and an uncomfortable feeling that sets the tone for everything that follows this extended opening segment. This sense of unease continues as Mia watches newly discovered footage of Riley on the day of her disappearance, but as Mia embarks on her own investigation, there is an evident shift in the film’s storytelling technique that becomes the film’s most alarming issue.

As Mia embarks to Shelby Oaks looking for answers as to her sister’s disappearance, beginning to discover something far more sinister at play connected to their shared past, as a viewer it is easy to become immersed in the plot. It is clear that the story for Shelby Oaks is born out of Stuckmann’s love for the horror genre, calling back to notable films of the genre such as The Blair Witch Project, Hereditary and Rosemary’s Baby, and while the overarching story is without question intriguing and has great potential, its delivery squanders that potential. As plot elements are discovered by Mia on her search for Riley, ones that should stump a character in a well crafted mystery, they are instantly resolved with an obvious answer that takes away any reward from the next piece of the puzzle being revealed. There is no room for these plot points developments to breathe or expand in the viewers’ minds, preventing them from pondering what the latest clue discovered by Mia could mean and dampening the mystery element of the story. In writing the screenplay this way, Stuckmann undervalues the audience’s intelligence and prevents them from coming to any sort of realization about the direction of the story, instead insisting on spoon-feeding them answers which takes away from the effectiveness of the mystery. So by the time that the film’s climax plays, which in terms of the story itself only feels like what should be the end of the story’s second act due to a blink or you’ll miss it third act, Stuckmann’s final reveal does not feel as shocking as intended. Part of this is because of the delivery of the story, part of it is due to too many different horror subgenres being crammed into this short film, but you can’t help but admire and give Stuckmann credit for the utterly chilling note that the film ends on.

One of the grounding factors of the film’s story is the relationship between Mia and Riley, and while Mia is only present in archival footage throughout the film, the heart of the sisterly bond is never lost within the film. It helps to fuel Sullivan’s performance, allowing her to develop the story’s foundation, but in terms of writing compared to the rest of the film, it does not feel like the work of Stuckmann and his co-story creator and his wife Samantha Elizabeth. It feels far more focused and well rounded then the delivery rest of the film, which will only generate suspicion about what refinements were done during the film’s reshoots and how heavily involved Flanagan was for these reshoots, as the tone that the strength in developing the relationship between Mia and Riley brings to the film feels more like Flanagan’s previous works than the rest of the writing of Shelby Oaks.

Without question, the highlight of the film is Camille Sullivan’s lead performance as Mia. Giving an absolutely committed scream queen performance that captures every ounce of fear, longing for answers about her missing sister, and an unwavering belief that Riley is still out there waiting to be discovered, Sullivan stuns every second on screen. From the unmatched slow head turns with a petrified to death shake that instantly energizes the viewer with the same mortified energy to the commanding onscreen presence she has, Sullivan makes Shelby Oaks a chilling watch and significantly improves the shortcomings of the script. The supporting cast is all good, especially Robin Bartlett as Norma, but with the short runtime and solo search for Riley that Mia embarks on, they all have a scene or two and are merely there to help propel the story forward without the material to make a lasting impression on the film.

There may be issues with the story and the script itself, but what is undeniable is Stuckmann’s talents behind the camera as a director. Being a film critic for years himself, he has developed a great eye for what makes a good director and how a well made film should come across, and he translates that critical lens seamlessly to his directorial efforts. Shelby Oaks may rely on simple and traditional jump scare methods, but Stuckmann’s execution of them ensures that there are multiple moments that will have audiences jumping out of their seats. The film’s sound design ensures that every creak and noise heard just off screen pierces; the camera work shows exactly enough to allow audiences to follow along with Mia on her quest but never too much to keep the suspense alive in every frame, and the editing of the sequences with Mia doing her research cutting between headlines, photos, and lines of text is incredibly effective. Where Stuckmann’s technical direction of the film falters is with the use of the film’s musical score, composed by The Newton Brothers and James Burkholder. The compositions themselves are good, but they are used too heavy-handedly throughout the film, overpowering too many moments and once again like the script, telling the audience how to feel and react to the film rather than letting the filmmaking naturally do that. But for a first time filmmaker, with no background or education in filmmaking itself, Stuckmann shows great promise for bringing a story to life on screen with a great eye and vision to make a well crafted and solid looking film with an undeniable atmospheric effect (especially given the film’s limited budget), and one can only imagine what he could conjure up on screen when not held back by a subpar screenplay.

While the answers behind Riley Brennan’s disappearance and the darkness within the abandoned town of Shelby Oaks have all the right building blocks to develop an enticing horror mystery, that under the direction of Chris Stuckmann creates some chilling and tense moments, the screenplay does not rise to that same standard. As the story moves past its enticing found footage opening segment, which is easily the best fifteen minutes of the entire film, an underdeveloped script that is more concerned with telling viewers what they probably could have pieced together for themselves rather than letting the mystery develop naturally through visual storytelling renders Shelby Oaks a mediocre horror film at best. Though Chris Stuckmann’s talents in the director’s chair are undeniable with the way he creates a spine tingling atmosphere that is required for the horror genre, his writing abilities severely dampen what could have been an impressive feature film debut, sadly making Shelby Oaks a rather forgettable horror flick.