How far would you be willing to go to become famous? This is the question a group of three twentysomething women ask themselves when they decide to form a black metal band in Chile in the late 1990s. The band calls themselves Invoking Yell and plans a trip to a remote location in the wilderness to work on their demo tape, hoping to capture electronic voice phenomenon (EVPs) to give their music a unique sound. While alone in the middle of nowhere, what starts out as playful competition among the women becomes something much darker and more dangerous, making Invoking Yell a chilling, intensely unnerving experience.
Written by Barry Keating (Killer Mermaid) and Patricio Valladares (En las Afueras DE la Ciudad) and directed by Valladares, Invoking Yell is shot VHS found footage style and has an authentic 1990s feel, from denim jackets to the camera and recording equipment used by the band. In addition to the obvious rivalry between the women, the film also touches on the misogyny in the music industry, with one of the band members joking about designing her jacket with a drawing of a uterus on the back.
Andrea (María Jesús Marcone), the self-appointed leader of the band, has known Tania (Macarena Carrere) since they went to church together as children. Ruth (Andrea Ozuljevich) had to borrow the camera equipment she’s using to shoot the band’s first music video from her father who is a journalist, and Andrea makes no effort to hide the fact she doesn’t like Ruth and only let her come along because she has the equipment they need. Andrea suggests the trio travel to a cabin in the woods, that only she has been to in the past, to work on their demo tape and make the music video, because she claims there is paranormal activity at the location. Andrea convinces her bandmates that if they record the voices of spirits and mix them with their music, it will give Invoking Yell a distinctive sound, which she calls “depressive, suicidal black metal” and help them achieve fame.
Once they arrive at the cabin, Ruth begins filming, as Andrea gives them a tour of the surrounding property. Andrea talks to the camera as she describes the grim history of the area, including a bus crash and a questionable fire in a nearby building that she says left demons and other spirits behind. While filming Andrea and Tania discussing the history of black metal music, feeling like outcasts, and Andrea’s morbid ideas for the band’s music video, Ruth complains about repeated technical difficulties and the increasingly erratic behavior of the camera and audio equipment. Andrea jokes that their demo tape will be cursed.
The abandoned buildings in the wilderness and overcast skies are especially effective in creating a simple, but foreboding atmosphere for Invoking Yell and conjuring feelings of dread in the viewer as the story unfolds. María Jesús Marcone gives a remarkably sinister performance as the controlling Andrea, who clearly has anger issues and may also have hidden motives for luring the other women into the woods.
When it finally gets dark, the women build a fire, drink wine, and put on heavy black and white makeup in preparation for their music video. While Ruth films them, Andrea and Tania light candles and arrange skulls and Andrea pulls a large book out of her backpack. She shows her bandmates La Biblia de las Brujas (The Witches Bible) and tells them they are going to perform a ritual to summon souls, which will require some kind of blood sacrifice. Then she takes out a knife, cuts open her hand, and slowly drips the blood over the candles and skulls. They came to the woods to make a demo tape with hopes of becoming the first famous all-female black metal band from Chile, but none of the women could have imagined the lasting effect this night will have on their lives.
Elements of the supernatural and occult rituals and riveting performances make the final act of Invoking Yell shocking, anxiety-inducing, and genuinely horrifying. Fans of found footage will especially enjoy this film and since the camera work is not the overly shaky style that makes some people feel sick, even those who aren’t huge fans of the subgenre should find something to like in this nightmarish tale.
Invoking Yell premiered virtually at the 2023 Chattanooga Film Festival, which is offering a hybrid fest experience again this year.
The post ‘Invoking Yell’ Review – Macabre Found Footage Tale from Chile Opens The Witches Bible appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.