The Shade uses elements of horror to portray the demons of mental illness. Even further, it is not merely mental illness but rather the impact of generational trauma and how such mental illness can be passed down from parent to child and even to siblings. However, in its delivery of this message, the film seems to be unsure of whether it wants to be an intellectual social commentary or just a horror flick set in a coming-of-age motif. The protagonist claims repeatedly that no one understands his pain, but as presented neither does the audience, which as previously stated seems to be part of the artistic method of delivering the feeling of isolation. Unfortunately, it also makes it difficult to connect and empathize with the main character. By the time one realizes that this is not a horror film where monsters are “real” in the film, the viewer tends not to care, and if there is any conern remaining, one wants to know those missing details to better understand whether this is a horror-themed curse or really about awareness of mental health. The film simply misses to deliver in either way. However, to be fair to Tyler Chipman, this is his first film.

SYNOPSIS (Spoilers)

The film opens with a scene that might make one believe it is about a secret cult, as a man commits suicide and his fallen corpse is examined by humanoids in black, hooded robes. However, it is later revealed that this scene may not even be accurate and just an imagining or a haunting over the protagonist's learning of his father's death. The character, Ryan, visits a therapist regularly to help cope with the anxiety left from his father's absence. Further, Ryan, still living at home to attend a community college, help his mother and watch over his younger brother. The stress in Ryan's world increases when his older brother, Jason, comes home in the middle of the semester; however, Jason is not forthcoming about why he returned. The rapport between the two older siblings had been strained since their dad's suicide, but now that Jason returned but doesn't explain himself, this event raises Ryan's anger and anxiety.

One night, Ryan spots a creepy woman hiding in Jason's closet, but Jason had left the room and becomes angry with Ryan for snooping. The two get into a physical altercation, which is broken up by the presence of their youngest brother, James. Jason attempts to apologize to Ryan the next day, but Ryan is apathetic.

Soon the audience learns a little more about Jason, but this too is lacking in details that evokes a reasonable connection. The quick summary is that Jason is a talented boxer who went to college on an athletic scholarship. His reason for dropping out is never explicitly explained, but Jason offers a moment of brotherly love, expressing that he loved his brothers despite not saying it often enough. However, soon Ryan has a nightmare in which he witnesses Jason naked in the woods and begging for help. Upon waking, Ryan discovers that Jason had killed himself at the time of the dream. As a tiny view of redemption, one might conclude that Jason only returned to say goodbye, knowing he was doomed to the demons in his mind, hoping it would end with him; yet, that is conjecture because those details were never made clear.

At this point, Ryan is slipping deeper into his illness, seeing the creepy woman in more and more places. He also tries to cover the illusions he sees, lying to his therapist, refusing to discuss his pain and expressing self-loathing for not having better control over his own mind. Further, he begins to shirk his responsibilities involving his younger brother, drawing the ire of their mother; however, Ryan blamed her for Jason' death, damaging that relationship even more.

In the pinnacle of this tale, Ryan has left his brother James alone. The younger brother calls his mother, who is working at the hospital and unable to leave. James cries to his mother that there is a monster in the house. Ryan finally takes the call from his mother to discover that James is in danger of this stalking monster. When Ryan arrives back home to find James, he discovers him at the cemetary where their father had been laid to rest. A lot of this scene is metaphoric, mixing the real search for James with the hallucination of the demon chasing Ryan. Creating further perplexity, both James and Ryan can see the same mental mirage. While this is a symbolic way to express generational mental health, it blurs the line of what is in the character's head versus what is happening in the storyline's reality.

In the final scene, Ryan and James work together to face the demon woman of their hallucinations. There is a clear message that Ryan is no longer afraid of her and will refuse to let her control him further. Because the two brothers perform this together, it implies that Ryan will be the understanding support for James to fight off the mental illness as well. In a way, it is an auspicious ending, but it is also ambiguous because the result is never shown. Further, Ryan told James right before the demon appears that he was not certain if his idea would work or not, making it difficult to feel comfortable with the final scene.

Lastly, having experienced all the trauma and drama through the film, this name-it-and-claim-it solution for the resolve leaves one with a feeling that it if it does work, the whole movie could have been avoided. There was no breakthrough revelation, nothing profound discovered. As a film about mental illness and awareness, there were no valuable understanding delivered. As a film in the horror, the lack of suspense or even jump-scares will leave the fan of the fear-thriller genre rather cold as well. The movie was entertaining but likely the only reason is because after it ends, one questions what was just seen.

Dj Hackney, the Unqualified Film Critic
Reviewed on December 4, 2024