Culture Shock + They Come Knocking
I was chuffed to be granted access to an advanced screening for a Blumhouse episode for one of the best online tv shows for Hulu’s ‘Into the Dark.’ Culture Shock movie, episode ten screened at Cinepocalypse Film Festival before it made its way to Fantasia International Film Festival 2019. The episode is available on the HULU movies platform. This article is a double episode review with They Come Knocking movie and Culture Shock. Two Hulu movies reviewed spoiler-free for this awesome genre-twisting series.
They Come Knocking
Firstly, let’s get into They Come Knocking. These online tv shows are themed around fathers day. The poster for this one alone made me excited to see it. As usual, the casting is phenomenal and this episode features a long-haired Clayne Crawford (The Perfect Host 2010) for his character of dear old dad. Along for the road trip, to bid a final farewell to their mother are Josephine Lanford (Wolf Creek 2017) and her sister Lia McHugh (The Lodge 2019.) Let me just say that Lia’s performance as Maggie was outstanding especially given she cries quite a bit.
Knock-Knock
This type of setup is one of my absolute favorites in horror films. Something creepy outside wanting to be inside set against a remote location is just cool. The trio set up camp, reminisce, and reopen old wounds before retiring for the night. Mid-slumber, there is a knock on the door of their family-sized Winnebago. Some children are outside and they want in. Not content with being refused entry they promise eerily that the family will need to eventually come out.
Adam Mason is back for his second stab at this great anthology series. His previous episode I’m Just Fu*cking With You was one of my favorites, Here again, Mason doesn’t fail to deliver the sneaky scares I am becoming more and more addicted to. They Come Knocking was written by Shane and Carey Van Dyke. Most recently they both wrote The Silence and Chernobyl Diaries which are currently streaming on Netflix.
This episode draws the entire premise from its opening poem flashed onto the screen. While I like the idea of what these pesky, creepy kids are…it kind of sucked the scare right out at the end of “They Come Knocking” when it took on a more dramatic theme over its previous horror one. Like Culture Shock, you can watch the They Come Knocking movie on Hulu in the USA.
I give They Come Knocking
3 great performances out of 5
Culture Shock Review
Director Gigi Saul Guerrero, known for her “Tex-Mex” filmmaking brings everything she has to her movie “Culture Shock. The story for Culture Shock, streaming on Hulu is about Marisol. Marisol is played by Martha Higareda and in certain light looks a lot like a younger version of Sandra Bullock. She dreams of a better life and greener pastures which spur her into the dangerous mission of crossing the border in the same week as her baby is due. The movie is filled with massive dollops of political undertones, references to ideas seen in the media about how to manage future prisons, and some unexpected violence. I’m talking flash-backs that include r*pe scenes, self-inflicted stabbings, and batons to the mouth. Culture Shock is written by James Benson, Efren Hernandez, and the director herself, and I can only hope this trio teams up again for some more horror in the future.
The Culture Shock movie plot utilizes the many ways in which people in dire situations can be stripped of not only their hard-won money but of any type of control over their situations. As they lay their lives in the hands of strangers many don’t survive the journey they embark on.
Awesome Casting For Culture Shock
The cast is heavy with recognizable faces including the esteemed horror queen Barbara Crampton. Crampton appears as Betty when the small group of survivors looking for something more out of life reaches their destination. It’s also where the narrative takes a tonal shift splitting itself between tech horror and something akin to the 2004 movie, The Stepford Wives. That’s as far into spoiler territory that I’ll go because as I said earlier, this one’s excellent all the way through.
Culture Shock nails the theme for Independence Day. It also reminds you that just because you dream of a better life somewhere you’ve never been before, doesn’t mean it will fulfill your every desire once you get there.
Where Can I Watch the Movie “Culture Shock”?
The episode aired for the Into the Dark TV Show on July 4th on Hulu.
Culture Shock cast includes Martha Higarda (as Marisol), Richard Cabral (as Santo), Creed Bratton (as Attwood), and Shawn Ashmore (as Thomas.)
The Culture Shock film is rated
4.75 the grass isn’t always greener somewhere else out of 5
