'Til Night

Matt Boatright-Simon
U.S., 2007
English
97 minutes • Color
Production: Speakeasy Pictures
Screenplay: Matt Boatright-Simon
Cinematography: Tarin Anderson
Principal Cast: Matthew James, Nellie Sciutto, Owen Williams, Tiffany Sweet

SHOWTIMES:
Sat Apr 28 9:15pm Key Cinema (Key Cinemas)

Wed May 2 9:45pm Key Cinema (Key Cinemas)

New Castle native, Matt Boatright-Simon has created a unique little picture in ‘Til Night. It’s part police procedural, part vampire story; part human drama, part horror movie. For those who want the chills of a suspenseful thriller, you’ve got it. If you prefer character development and subtle lead performances, you’ve got that, too. If you like your horror films a little bloody, that’s there, too (although it’s certainly not the gore-fest that frequently passes for horror these days).

Ray Steppin is a small-town sheriff in the mountains. He’s awakened early one morning with a hangover of steep proportions and notified that a bevy of bodies have been found. This isn’t the first time it’s happened. As the investigation deepens and night begins to fall, it becomes more and more clear that what Ray and his deputies (and the local coroner/priest) are up against isn’t natural — and through flashback, the murders are revealed one by one.

Confident lensing by Tarin Anderson captures the scale and grandeur of the wilderness. Jim Round delivers a wry, subtle performance as Ray, a man who’s down on his luck and has little time to dwell on his loss amidst growing
danger. ‘Til Night is a Hoosier natives’ jab at genre conventions and Boatright-Simon is up to the task, honoring and skewering them at the same time. - Wm. Brian Owens