Shelby Oaks has (arguably) picked up a lot more interest in the horror community than other similar projects. This is mainly because it has been co-produced, co-written, and directed by Chris Stuckmann in his feature directorial debut. Stuckmann made his name for being a prolific YouTuber, author, and film critic, with (currently) over 2 million subscribers and over 700 million views on his platform. Given his reputation and knowledge of film genres, this project was expected to be something special. Filming was due to start in 2021 but was delayed for various valid reasons. A Kickstarter campaign actually led it to become one of the most-funded horror films soon after it launched, bolstered by the fact that genre giant Mike Flanagan was revealed as one of the executive producers. So, after delays, financial boosts, and reshoots after festival showings, it’s now on big screens throughout the States and the UK, as at least one distribution company (Neon) thought that it might just be a good idea to have at least one horror film actually release at Halloween this year. Way to go guys. A big fat boo to all the spineless studios who couldn’t be arsed to schedule anything scary between the (admittedly great) Black Phone 2 two weeks ago and the height of the spooky season. Anyway, gripes aside, it’s time to see if this Oak’s bark is worse than its fright.

 

The film starts as a ‘mockumentary’, detailing the disappearance of one Riley Brennan (Sarah Durn). Some twelve years ago, Riley was part of the first wave of really successful ‘reality’ channels on YouTube and a prime mover in the ‘paranormal investigation’ genres. With the (uninspiring) team name of “Paranormal Paranoids”, they filmed footage in haunted houses and scary locations. But when the team was shooting footage in the deserted small town of Shelby Oaks, they just disappeared overnight. Reclaimed footage shows a deathly scared Riley being apparently abducted, but no other clues as to what happened that night were found. The fate of the other team members was eventually discovered, but Riley remains missing to this day. This doesn’t sit right with her doting older sister, Mia (Camille Sullivan), who is the focal point of the documentary and stays obsessed with finding her sibling. As the credits roll, after a shocking event traumatises Mia, the film returns to a standard narrative as she views more recovered footage and starts to piece together a potentially sinister path to her sister. But what has happened to Riley during those twelve years? Is she still alive, and does this all connect to a troubled childhood for both sisters? Place your bets.

 

You can’t help but feel that Stuckmann might be judged a little too harshly in some respects, given his knowledge and profession. After some good festival feedback, mainstream critics have been a little more mixed in their responses. Truth be told, Shelby is a decent and solid film that is perfect for a late-night or date-night Halloween viewing. It’s also very impressive for a first-time director, with some accomplished scenes, decent performances, and a grim tone. However, there are still some setbacks and definite room for improvement, which nonetheless bodes very well for future projects from the filmmaker (especially if he sticks with horror). The first little gripe (which is purely personal) is the abandonment of the mockumentary style. This is perhaps the most pitch-perfect and chilling aspect of the film. It takes up the first fifteen minutes and leads dramatically to unexpected violence and a late segue into the belated credits. But it feels very much like “Lake Mungo” in its style and tone, a film we drastically need a younger and more current sibling for, because that movie has been basically unmatched for effectiveness ever since its release… which, by the way, was seventeen years ago! It just seems a pity that the mockumentary format is stopped after the credits, and we’re in more familiar territory.

 

And by familiar, we mean really familiar horror cliches and set-ups. In some respects, it could be called “Shelby Tropes” (Hah! Here all week, folks.). If that seems a little mean (and it shouldn’t be taken in that sentiment), let's just list some of the important ingredients in the plot: spooky abandoned amusement park, haunted prison, hellish hounds, a literal cabin in the woods, dark figures scratching at the window, grainy found footage (with clues in the frames), and stick symbols left in a forest. Get the picture? It’s not that it’s bad. It’s done well and just about slots together in a narrative sense. But from those plot details, you can’t help but call back to classic genre fare like The Blair Witch Project, The Omen, The Exorcist and so on (including one film that would be a spoiler to mention). It’s a bit like someone has pulled elements apart from those movies, put them into a bag, shaken it about, and then grabbed an assortment from the contents. Even the (genuinely effective) moment which comes when Mia views some new and disturbing scenes on a retrieved video feels like a 3rd-person found footage movie.

 

The fact that a lot of Shelby remains so creepy and effective is down to the core elements of the lead performance, atmospheric soundtrack and decent camerawork. In particular, Sullivan is very good as the focus of the phantasmagorical happenings. Frequently called upon to lose her shit and react in various ways to jump scares and devastating occurrences, she is quite compelling as the lead. However, she is also called upon to make some very dumb decisions (would you follow a glowing-eyed dog into the woods for no good reason?) and show absolutely no common sense in life-or-death situations when most of us would just be getting the hell out of dodge. Not only that, but on at least three or four occasions, Mia has to respond to a scary off-screen noise, and Sullivan has to ever-so-slowwwwly turn her head towards its origin with an aghast facial expression. You’re willing her to just go “Nope” and walk away by the fifth time.

 

Whilst Sullivan impresses during some of the more dynamic scenes, some of the lines between her and other characters are a little janky and unpolished. Her uber-crappy husband (Brendan Sexton III as Robert Walker) is the focal point for some of the worst exchanges. After Mia delivers an emotional explanation of her sister’s fate, there’s a long pause before he flatly responds, “You need help”, before ambling off and moping through the rest of the story. Therefore, the best moments come from Mia investigating or being placed in peril, with some cracking (if unlikely) set-ups being manifested in later scenes. This is where a decent sense of eeriness or “not-right-ness” comes into the mix. Perhaps, even in light of any shortcomings, this is a tale that could exist in the same cinematic universe as Hereditary. In its best moments, its matter-of-fact take on demonology and the paranormal is akin to the same sort of tone as that movie. This is helped by some (all-too-brief) appearances by genre faves Keith David and Derek Mears. Could’ve had a better naming convention for the supposed ‘big bad’ though. It sounds like something you would have on a spice rack or a character from Game of Thrones.

 

Overall, the film succeeds in its lower-level ambitions due to the accomplished feeling of dread that permeates throughout the plot. Themes of childhood abuse merge with global myths of creatures such as a succubus and other demons, whilst the idea of small-town America being gutted by supernatural influences must feel extremely uncomfortable at the moment. This lends everything a decent feeling of nastiness and unwholesome practices showing just under the surface of suburban normality. Having said that, realism takes a definite backseat here. Not least of which is rural police forces showing all the skill and observational powers of a blind fish in a barrel of ink. Missing girl, you say? Let’s not search or question anyone in the immediate vicinity for over a decade.

 

All in all, Shelby isn’t bad. It’s an undemanding slice of American horror pie that liberally borrows from the classics. If you can imagine the sort of film where important clues are discovered by googling “Darke County Demonic Influences”, then you get the idea. There are decent moments of creepiness and a nice underlying sense of dread, but a lot of the early promise doesn’t really materialise despite some decent gusto from Sullivan. If you keep your expectations at a sensible level and don’t expect anything mind-blowing, this is still a decent bet for Halloween. Other than that, Stuckmann shows that it's worth keeping an eye on his future projects, but he hasn’t hit that sweet spot just yet. Still think that a mockumentary style might have elevated it more. Not “tree-mendous” but “stick” with it and you won’t be “board”.