Boo: Written Review

Boo

Written Review

Hi everyone and welcome to MyIndie Review Vlog, the show that gives you spoiler-free reviews of indie films. My name is Asaf Angel from MyIndie Productions.

Today I’ll be reviewing 2019’s, recently completed, already award-winning horror short, Boo. Written, directed by and starring MyIndie featured artist, talented U.S. filmmaker and actress Rakefet Abergel.

This will be the second film of Rakefet’s, we review on the show, after having reviewed the award winning horror short Jax In Love, back in season one of MyIndie Review Vlog, also written by and starring Rakefet and directed by Colin Campbell.

Thank you, Rakefet, for sharing yet another film with us.

The story revolves around a single pivotal night in the life of Devi, a young woman portrayed by Rakefet, who is a seven-year recovering addict.

At the end of what seems to be an Addicts Anonymous group meeting, Devi shares her fears with her supporting gal-pals: The comforting Ava played by Parisa Fitz-Henley and the exuberant Grace, played by Laura Wiggins.

Devi is in a good place in her life, having gained control over her demons for a substantial period now and in a loving relationship with boyfriend Jared, played by Josh Kelly in a very competent display. It feels her biggest fear is the possibility of one day “falling off the wagon”, exposing herself to Jared as she was in her bad days.

Holding on to a 7-year-mark sobriety chip and encouraged by her two friends, it looks like things might be falling into place for Devi, as she earned the right to be happy and healthy.

That same night, Devi was waiting for Jared to come pick her up from her meeting… Which is about where everything goes horribly, horribly WRONG. I literally can’t say anything more for fear of spoiling.

Rakefet gives us an easily relatable premise, cleverly written into a story designed to keep our attention on the obvious and be entertained without necessarily fully realizing the stakes.

In a 14-minute runtime, much like I felt with her previous film, Jax In Love, this new film is yet another very well executed demonstration of capabilities. It showcases Rakefet’s evolving writing talent. Rakefet seems to have an interesting way of looking at things and I look forward to seeing what her next script will be about. Boo is Rakefet’s first foray into “straight horror”, after Jax in Love was arguably, even as Rakefet herself expressed, more of a drama-thriller.

Rakefet’s versatility as an Actor is also on display. Just a glimpse at her body of work in indie and mainstream projects will show you that she can assume a vast range of character types.

And, of course, her vision and growing skill as director is in full display here, in a very successful debut. While Jax possibly had a somewhat deeper story and more complex characters, the step up in production value here is evident. All the ingredients make Boo a nice improvement on the excellent Jax, further proving that Rakefet’s upward trajectory is going firmly in the right direction.

To sum up this gem, Rakefet and her team plunged into this project with a very high level of professionalism. The performances were precise and convincing. Cinematography by Alex U. Griffin, was breathtakingly professional, and the production value was top level. I dare say studio-grade. A very impressive project.

Boo gets an 8/10 on the Look At Me, I’m A Film Critic scale!The film has recently commenced what marks to be a very successful festival run, already picking up awards. Stay tuned for further updates on its progression and when and where will it be available for viewing in the future.

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Until next time, keep supporting indie film. Watch, share, spread the word, my name is Asaf Angel, I thank you for tuning in to MyIndie Review Vlog. I’ll see you next Thursday!