The Laughing Mask Movie Review

I've wrote a few pieces about this feature, mostly because I largely support independent features and I've been following the movie's progress since 2012 when the first short was released on Youtube.

I had the chance to see the film last year when I was sent a screener by the Director Michael Aguiar,and I enjoyed it for what it was. A low budget independent film with a very different take on the horror genre.

So I was surprised when after nearly a year, I received an invitation to go to the Wolf's Museum of Mysteries in St Augustine to review the film.

I arrived for the 6pm showing and was already impressed by the amount of people there, the courtyard was full and I had to sit on the side as there were no seats available. After awhile the movie didnt start as they were waiting for it to get darker so the projector could be used, so I left my seat and went on to look around the museum.
Upstairs they have a ton of the props and even a torture machine I didnt recognize from the first movie screning, so I assumed reshoots had been done.

This will have spoilers about the some of the parts so if you dont want to know, just stop reading here.

The movie finally started at 7:30 or so, just the very beginning of the film was already completely different, there was a scene involving cartoons that was a little jarring but very cool to look at, then we went into another new scene at a police station and we get some more information about the plot involving Kate and Cordova, then all was about the same except for the fight scene, and what a DIFFERENCE that made, I honestly hated the actor they had playing the pimp in the original, he was bad as they get, huge it didnt make for a good scene, but the new scene was very well done and improved in every way. That was what I noticed about the film the most, it seemed like everything was just bumped up a notch, the blood, effects and production value. It was as if I was watching an entirely different movie and I loved it.

The Laughing Mask character was given more depth and screen time, we now have a place he lives in, a "lair" if you will where The Laughing Mask keeps his most prized possessions, the guilty ones who didn't deserve a quick kill, but are kept as pets for his amusement. You couldn't help to feel sad for the Pig Man or nauseated at the mermaid made with pieces of human skin and force fed a fish. We also had a very interesting scene involving a made up puppet machine and I have to say that new sequence was my favorite in the film.

That's where the spoilers will end because come the end of the film you need to really see it. The beginning with its odd sequence ties up completely to the end showing a mental breakdown in a way I haven't seen in a horror movie, also kudos for the homage to the original "The Iron Claw" silent film that had (we were told during the Q&A) a mysterious character also called The Laughing Mask and he makes a cameo appearance in the film.

The acting was solid in most parts, the day players were weak and Kate's ex made me want to groan. Instead of feeling bad for him you actually feel for Kate, who is probably going for worst mother of the year award by doing exactly the opposite of everything to keep herself safe.

Im definitely interested to see how this movie does and if there is a sequel. A good part of the cast was there signing autographs and taking pictures, there was also a small impromptu Q&A session where they discussed the making of the film and how much has been added to it, also in a very smart move close to Halloween, we had The Laughing Mask "masks" on sale, I bought one myself, couldn't resist..

For the people who enjoy gore and mindless horror films, this is not for you. I cant even classify The Laughing Mask correctly as its very gory at parts but a police thriller at heart.

I took some pictures from the showing out of the Wolf's Musum of Mystery Facebook account and as well as the Laughing Mask FB.

The Laughing Mask movie review

This has been a long time coming...

When I first heard about "The Laughing Mask" was through AINT IT COOL NEWS  AmbushBug horror movie column, I watched the youtube video at that point at around 150k views and was amazed by the story. It was in the heels of the "Casey Anthony" trials and the filmmakers used a very similar person, and definitely capitalized on the hate every American had for Anthony and the views skyrocketed.. 

Suddenly that video was gone and more news came about the short being turned into a full length feature, then the movie dropped from sight for a year. 

This happens quite often specially with indie flicks, but apparently Director Michael Aguiar spent quite a large amount of time actually raising funds and the film was fully funded by the Brazilian Community. 

With Funding in place,  Michael Aguiar went on to find Director of Photography William Schweikert and shooting started.  29 days of a grueling shoot took place ending in The "Wolf's Museum of History " in St Augustine, FL

Both teasers released raked in over 100k views total and were very well received on the internet, so we were very happy to get the screener and the opportunity to review this movie. 

"It was a great opportunity to work with fantastic people" Aguiar says. 

Casting was also a big part of this feature, John Hardy's performance as Jake Johnson is flawless, he is haunted by the death of his wife and disappearance of his child, not caring about anything else except bringing The Laughing Mask to justice. 

Sheyenne Rivers is great as Kate O'malley, and Gabriel Lee steals every scene he is in as Officer Cordova. The scenes with the three of them are the high point of the film and the acting was definitely there. 

But the greatest character in the film was for me The Laughing Mask himself played by Jeff Jenkins. 

Jenkins shows you don't need to speak to act, as The Laughing Mask doesn't talk but his snakelike movement and mannerisms speak for themselves. Every time you see him on screen you have the idea something bad is about to happen.. 

This is still a low budget film and although it looks spectacular you can see where some things had to be sacrificed in order to tell a story and that is ok with me. It's inventive "Grassroots" filmmaking at its best and in a world where everything is CGI this is very much a movie driven by storytelling rather then Gore.. 

This might be a turnoff to some fans of Gore Horror, but Laughing Mask is more of a crime thriller starring a serial killer then Horror, this is definitely no slasher flick.. 

I won't spoil the ending but it has a pretty decent twist. Even if you get the main twist the second will get you spinning, and that's where this production sets itself apart from other independent films, it carves a piece of the market for itself and does so very well.. 

Laughing Mask is a well shot thriller with a lot to give and I recommend everyone to take a look at it.