Summit (2015)

Boring

A Masterpiece!

Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.

The acting in this movie is really good.

Terrible Movie As an avid movie watcher and running a business in Horror and Sci-Fi I make sure to watch and keep up with all the latest from blockbuster to indie, so when I noticed this movie added to Amazon I thought "hey, why not", this was my first mistake. My second was actually watching the film twice in case I was being overly judgmental in my opinion. To quote Amazon's description "A micro-low budget, slow burn, character focused exploration of horror genre tropes.) This my friends is where we have a communication problem not because of those words but a 4.8 out of 10 on IMDb which is where Amazon copy their rating standard is just wrong Amazon should allow people to rate like Netflix because me thinks this movie would not be anywhere near a 4.8. OK so the many indie movie makers out there grabbing a camera and making their movie is extremely easy today but sometimes don't….just don't. You want to stand out and be different and get your foot on a ladder or appreciated for the movie you spin out, great. But movies like this are not any different from the other 1,000's floating about. The acting is extremely poor and the script is so far off that I think most of the filming was ad-lib and they worked to a "guide". There are many and I mean many uncomfortable silences in the film where either an actor has forgotten their line (if there was one) or said actor isn't good at improv. The shooting was simple, camera work was not that bad for indie but unfortunately one of the biggest problems with indie movie making (and I speak from experience) is you put money into one area and neglect another and in this case it would be sound and talent. If making an indie movie and it involves running around with a JVC camera and you only mic is the crappy one that came in a box of cereal then don't expect good quality. Would I recommend this movie? NO. Well there are many, many movies that are great Indies and others that either try too hard or literally don't try at all and just want an IMDb credit that get released.

You get the impression while watching SUMMIT, your usual zero-budget indie horror flick, that the writer and director wanted to make something more than just a typical slasher flick. If that was so, why go through the motions in such an obvious and predictable way as they've done here? The film is about a group of friends who go on a skiing holiday only to end up lost and sheltered in an abandoned house, where very bad things happen. It's badly shot and boring throughout, with a thrillery twist rather than supernatural, but the viewer's interest in what takes place is strictly minimal.

I thoroughly enjoyed this movie! The plot is engrossing and the climax chilling. Those involved in the production should be congratulated for producing such a good product on a shoe string budget. Obviously, a bigger budget would have helped with some of the visual effects, but what it lacks in polish it makes up for in creativity. I have to say that the musical score was overly subtle, and could have enhanced some scenes with a bit more punch. The actors were believable, and they were successful in taking the viewer with them an a journey from annoyance, to concern, to fear regarding their ever worsening situation. One could easily imagine what it would be like to be in their shoes. The dialog was clever and realistic, yet did not rely solely on gratuitous swearing, as movies often do when they lack strong dialog. Anyone who enjoys suspense movies will enjoy the way the tension builds to an explosive pay-off. I highly recommend this film to anyone who enjoys suspense, thrillers, and intelligent "horror".