With Valentine’s Day fast approaching, what better way to celebrate than to watch a film designed to explore the bright and dark paths of modern dating? The ᴅᴇᴀᴅ Thing, Elric Kane’s first solo directorial feature, offers glimpses of the complexities of human connection, toxic relationships, and co-dependency in a way that should stir up conversation. Yet the script, co-written by Webb Wilcoxen, takes a mild-mannered approach in tackling its themes. What we’re left with is a film that prioritizes repeтιтion over progressive storytelling to make its points.
The story follows Alex (Blu Hunt) as she navigates the online dating scene. She finds her latest hookups through the “Friktion” app, leaving her feeling emptier after each conquest. According to The ᴅᴇᴀᴅ Thing, such is the life of dating in Los Angeles, where the norm is to meet up for expensive drinks and exchange small-talk pleasantries. When that’s over, a nightcap often leads to Sєx, leaving Alex in a less-than-satisfactory state. With Alex, it’s not really about Sєx though, which makes us wonder: What has this woman experienced to make her feel ᴅᴇᴀᴅ inside?
The ᴅᴇᴀᴅ Thing Effectively Uses Noir To Tell Its Story
We never truly get concrete answers here, but the script does begin to play around with Alex’s inability to connect deeply. At almost 10 minutes into the film, she finally speaks and asks her date, “Do you ever feel like there’s just no escape?” Alex is speaking to Kyle (Ben Smith-Petersen), a handsome yet mysterious guy who offers her a different dating experience. She’s finally found an intelligent and interesting companion that sparks emotional and physical connection. So, when he disappears suddenly, it’s no wonder Alex spirals after losing the one person with whom she’s found a deep connection.
While The ᴅᴇᴀᴅ Thing doesn’t rely on genre tropes like blatant jump scares, the lighting and Kane’s direction usher in a tone that prepares us for the grim journey the characters will experience.
On the hunt to find answers, Alex stumbles upon Kyle’s well-kept secret, which sends her on a terrifying discovery of toxicity in her relationship. It’s so much so that her original thought of being ghosted seems more manageable. To navigate the growing dynamic between Kyle and Alex, Kane employs noir storytelling effectively. As the central relationship grows in complexity, so does the bleakness to match Kyle’s intense hold on Alex. Indeed, this isn’t your typical supernatural horror film, but Kane adequately plays into the emotional weight of the script to set the stage for fear to enter.
The ᴅᴇᴀᴅ Thing Is Missing A Piece Of The Journey
But Elements Of The Horror Are Noteworthy
Given the great foundation of Kane and Wilcoxen’s story, it’s disappointing to say that it didn’t entirely work for me as a motion picture. What begins as an interesting character study of a woman navigating a co-dependent relationship quickly dies off and results in a ghastly and tumultuous experience with ᴅᴇᴀᴅly consequences. But the journey from how they begin to how they end feels like its missing a great deal of context in between. Never mind that the film’s subtext thins out as we learn more about Kyle. This film lacks certainty and uses reiteration to mask its gaping screenwriting issues.
Script aside, there are elements to this horror film that are noteworthy. While The ᴅᴇᴀᴅ Thing doesn’t rely on horror genre tropes like blatant jump scares, the lighting and Kane’s direction usher in a tone that prepares us for the grim journey the characters will experience. Iona Vasile’s cinematography does the heavy lifting as we navigate the shift in Alex and Kyle’s relationship from infatuation to obsession. Finally, Michael Krᴀssner and Robin Vining’s score takes the film to the next level with its eerie sounds and ascent towards maximum intensity.
While the technical elements of The ᴅᴇᴀᴅ Thing are true standouts, the film is just fine. But when it comes to exploring modern dating in a digital world, especially when discussing the dangers thereof, we need more than fine. We need great. Thanks to a stellar lead performance from Hunt, it was almost there. The compelling emotional components regarding human connection were there as well. This is merely an example of misalignment when it comes to direction and script. Because while Kane’s vision is mostly clear, the execution of this particular script stumbles.
The ᴅᴇᴀᴅ Thing is streaming on Shudder on Friday, February 14.
