Every review that I have read from other web critics is that they all had very good things to say about Roman. Roman is the brain child of a fancy little duo that has worked together all to well in the past; Luck McKee and Angela Bettis. This time however the roles are reversed as it’s Bettis who is directing McKee this time.
Roman is about a guy who’s name is obviously Roman. He lives kind of a private, anti-social life. He works as a welder at what I’m guessing is a local metal works factory. He is kind of picked on by his co-workers a little bit for some obvious reasons. One such reason is that he doesn’t have a television. Others are about his sex life and what have you. However Roman has a streak of luck with the ladies when a young girl around his age moves into the apartment complex he lives in. Here name is not mentioned that much but she is simply known as “The Girl” or “Isis”, she is played by Kristen Bell whom you may know from the recent remake of the Japanese film Pulse. Well Roman meets her while hanging at his usually drinking spot on the roof of the complex. The two share a six pack together and hit it off. However Roman seems to be falling for her more than she is for him. And when Roman invites her over for a beer a few days later, all shit hits the fan, and what he thought would end up to be a nice romantic evening turned out with him killing Isis. The story then jumps to three weeks later. The police are coming around asking questions about the girl, but they don’t really give Roman much of a problem. A new girl named Eva has moved into the complex and she is more than your normal everyday young women. Eva likes to dress in some very odd outfits, and does her hair up in all these odd hair styles. She is an artist, and prefers to be one with nature. Roman and her hit it off very well, however she does not know about Roman’s secret, and Roman does not know Eva as well as he thinks.
One might think that Roman is just another art house film, that will be boring as hell. Well, I will admit that the film does come off as an art house type film at first, however I think that one might only think that, (as I did) because of the type of film it was shot on and the artistic merit that the shots and the script give off. However as the film moves along, the story gets better and better. Some of the problems I did notice with the film were some of the shots used and the editing. I felt at times that the film’s shot jumped a bit to quick, and that some of the shots were not set on the subject all the time. I’m not sure if this was done purposely, it could of been, but these were some of the small technical errors I found in the film. But that’s about it, I felt that Bettis did a great job directing her first film. Her ideas and creative shots really helped the mood of the film, like I said I noticed a few rookie errors but nothing that takes away from anything. I give her a lot of credit for making such a great film.
Who would of thought that a guy like Lucky McKee was such a great actor, besides directing some great horror films, the man can act. I mean it; he was pretty dam good in the role of Roman. I was surprised in fact, because most directors who also act usually have big ego’s and think they can do one just as good as the other. Most of the time their usually just good at one over the other, but in the case of Lucky McKee; the guy can do both. Aside from Lucky the rest of the cast and even the supporting cast was great in this film. I have to also give credit to actress Nectar Rose for playing the wacky Eva.
In terms of effects and production value, there really was not a lot of special make-up effects needed. The bodies in the film looked good. I mean after all they were dead bodies and well, they looked like real dead bodies. So nothing special there. And as for the production value, the film had some great locations that set the mood of each character, and that’s where I think Bettis vision comes to life in the film. The locations and colors used to describe the setting and the mood of the characters really went hand in hand and gave the film that artistic light that it shined off.
Overall, Roman is not really much of a horror film, but more of a psychological thriller with a bit of love story attached. It’s what some people might consider to be just another art house thriller, and that would be a fair assumption. However it’s much more than that. And the film as a whole is very reminiscent of a Hitchcock thriller. If your a fan of Mckee and Bettis you’ll probably see this film as one of the best films they have worked on together. Some people might not like the feel and atmosphere of the movie. But I for one think it’s one of the best films I’ve seen so far this year.
– Horror Bob
- Interview with J.R. Bookwalter - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Andrew J. Rausch - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Rick Popko and Dan West - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Director Stevan Mena (Malevolence) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Screenwriter Jeffery Reddick (Day of the Dead 2007) - January 22, 2015
- Teleconference interview with Mick Garris (Masters of Horror) - January 22, 2015
- A Day at the Morgue with Corri English (Unrest) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Writer/Director Nacho Cerda (The Abandoned, Aftermath) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Actress Thora Birch (Dark Corners, The Hole, American Beauty) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Actor Jason Behr, Plus Skinwalkers Press Coverage - January 22, 2015
