Lovely Molly

A Haxan Films and Amber Entertainment presentation. Created by Robin Cowie, Gregg Hale, Jane Fleming, Mark Ordesky. Executive producers, J. Andrew Jenkins, Robert Eick. Directed, compiled by Eduardo Sanchez story, Jamie Nash.With: Gretchen Lodge, Johnny Lewis, Alexandra Holden, Area Blauvelt."Lovely Molly" signifies a spooky but scattershot attempt by author-director Eduardo Sanchez to meld the very first-person handheld aesthetic of his 1999 horror landmark "The Blair Witch Project" having a more straightforward bump-in-the-evening thriller. Around Sanchez assisted to pioneer the found-footage technique which has since created numerous imitations, the gimmick feels ill motivated in the muddled tale of the youthful lady who foolishly moves into the house where she spent her abusive childhood. Still, before it tips over into banshee-wailing, screwdriver-carrying unpleasantness, this experimental exercise creates some legitimate shivers that may lure fringe horror fans in niche release. Bride and groom Molly (Gretchen Lodge) and Tim (Johnny Lewis) have elected to save cash by getting into that old, creaky countryside manse which has been in Molly's family for decades and it has been not inhabited because the dying of her father. Nobody thinks to warn the pair that it isn't really the best strategy -- not really Molly's sister, Hannah (Alexandra Holden), with whom she clearly shares uncomfortable girlhood reminiscences which are never clearly laid bare. Soon security sensors and unsettling noises are disturbing the couple's slumber, and Molly is rattled and shook with a noisy pounding at her door, despite the fact that regular police visits neglect to arrive proof of an burglar. With trucker Tim frequently on the highway, Molly becomes progressively disturbed and, a la "Paranormal Activity," begins utilizing a camcorder to record her actions throughout the house, wishing to capture proof of the menacing presence she gets so really. These nocturnal sequences are undeniably effective in the beginning, skillfully drawing the viewer's anxiety over what might lurk within the shadows, lower the staircase or behind a closet door. But it is a tool that can't sustain itself. An earlier, expensive-forward video capture of Molly, hysterically addressing your camera while clearly within the advanced stages of madness or demonic possession, appears to wink at Louise Donahue's close-up monologue in "Blair Witch" -- an evaluation that serves simply to underscore how shoehorned-within the technique feels within this more routinely frightening context. It's difficult to shake the concept that Sanchez (working from the story by Jamie Nash) made his protag a novice filmmaker partially to draw attention away from in the deficit from the material, as Molly's derangement leads her lower the foreseeable pathways: causing problems at the office, shunning clothing and making inventive utilization of household tools. With sharp features along with a close-popped hair do that lend her an abnormally tough, spunky search for a horror heroine, Lodge gives a completely committed performance, sometimes going screechily over-the-top but creepily finishing Molly's transformation right into a dead-eyed, bare-bodied succubus. Holden and Lewis work enough as her concerned family members. Using its bare walls, sparse decor and overall atmosphere of chill and rot, the home provides all of the production value "Lovely Molly" needs. Tech package is rough by design, and regardless of the problematic juxtaposition of first-person and third-person perspectives, d.p. John W. Rutland and editor Andrew Vona acquire a reasonably coherent mixture of footage. Soundscape is remarkably detailed, though repeated wailings of "Mollyyyyyyyyy..." tether the film towards the cheesy horror tradition it's clearly attempting to transcend.Camera (color, HD), John W. Rutland editors, Andrew Vona, Sanchez music, Tortoise production designer, Andrew Whitened set decorator, Natalie McAdoo-Howard seem, James Ridgley seem designers, Matt Davies, David West supervisory seem editor/re-recording mixer, Kevin Hill effects coordinator, Mark Fenlason visual effects supervisor, Tim Carras visual effects, Comen VFX casting, Pat Moran. Examined at Toronto Film Festival (Night time Madness), Sept. 15, 2011. Running time: 100 MIN. Contact Justin Chang at justin.chang@variety.com