Control – Frightfest Movie Review
Director: James Mark
Writer: James Mark, Matthew Nayman (Screenplay)
Cast
- Sara Mitich (Star Trek Discovery)
- George Tchortov (Goon)
Plot: A woman is imprisoned by a mysterious organization intent on testing her latent psychic abilities.
Runtime: 1 Hour 30 Minutes
There may be spoilers in the rest of the review
Story: Control starts when Eileen (Mitich) finds herself waking up tied to a chair. A voice commands her completes tasks, including moving a pencil. Upon completion, she shocked back to sleep. Soon, Eileen finds her husband Roger (Tchortov) in the room, but unable to help with the tasks.
As the pair look to solve the tasks thrown their way, it becomes clear that Eileen is exploring her psychic abilities. Each task is more complicated but in need of completion as they want to protect their daughter.
Verdict on Control
Characters
Eileen finds herself tied up and locked in a room, she is ordered to complete a task. She shows off her problem-solving skills to make this happen. Eileen is forced to complete the tasks to save her daughter, as they become more difficult. This sees her unlock her psychic powers that become more powerful with each task.
Roger is Eileen’s husband that appears in the room, he helps complete tasks without using a hands-on approach. He can only assist with ideas, as the two look back on their memories of their daughter.
Performances
Sara Mitich is exceptional to watch in the leading role, from the uncertain moments to the complete control moments. It is her performance that carries the movie through. George Tchortov is great in the supporting role, where his character has plenty of mystery about him.
Story
The story follows a woman that is locked in a room and ordered to complete a series of tasks to get keep her daughter safe. Each task becomes more difficult and starts unlocking her psychic abilities.
This is a story that explores the experiments demanding projects in which a woman is placed to unlock psychic abilities. It does offer up a mystery about why she is placed in this world, giving the whole move the same feel as ‘Exam’. Where the story can fall a little bit short, is with the repetitive nature of the tasks.
Themes
Control is a horror thriller that sees a character locked in a room, needing to complete tasks. It has all the trademarks of ‘Exam’, ‘Cube’ and even a little ‘Saw’ minus any of the gore. The room itself is designed to be everything from a nightmare. It does all ask a question about psychic abilities and what people can unlock from them.
Where to Watch: Signature Entertainment presents Control on Digital Platforms 26th September
Final Thoughts – Control is an interesting entry into the sci-fi discussion about psychic abilities.