SEEDS **** USA 2018 Dir: Owen Long 92 mins
“Deliver us from evil, but not into temptation.” The haunting words from this famous line echo all over this cracking horror tragedy from the USA from 2018. The evil was found in the beautiful and paradoxically calm environment of a lush ocean retreat by a young Lily (Uatchet Jin Juch) while staying with her self-made aunt and uncle. It was a shell and Lily inadvertently plants it in her Uncle Marcus’ house with devastating future consequences that are beautifully revealed with a sometimes shocking but always eerie intensity as this tragic horror unfolds it’s charms upon you, sucking you in like strange and insidious tentacles in the dead of the night.
The characters are superbly balanced with the sides fully fitted into the storyline so that they embellish the proficient performances from both Trevor Long (Marcus) and Andrea Chen (come of age Lily). This seed yearns for love and it’s ocean home and will go to any lengths to get what it wants and in the spirit of the classic legend of Dracula it needs it’s roots to ensure that love will endure and never die even in the face of death itself. All this intensity is set in an inspiring and enticing way by the gorgeous musical score from Erick Del Aguila and Ron Len and the atmosphere is both a visually awakening and very haunting one with well made special effects that bring Owen Long’s direction vividly to life and will keep you riveted to a compelling story and plot. In a startling, shocking and tragic mix of evil and emotion this able production from Uncork’d Entertainment will leave you changed forever and wanting more with one constant doubt hanging over you….
Is that shell really too pretty to leave alone?
Review by Nathan Sandiford