The setup for writer/director Calvin Lee Reeder’s dark, goopy sci-fi horror comedy The A-Frame adheres to the time-honored tradition of ambitious scientists unleashing grotesque horrors when dabbling with unknown realities beyond our own. While that does mean Cronenbergian body horror ahead, Reeder’s pitch-black sense of humor instead places this twisted slice of sci-fi horror closer to Tales from the Crypt for its almost whimsical sense of macabre justice.
The A-Frame introduces Donna (Dana Namerode) at one of the lowest points in her life as a musician with bone cancer that will require the amputation of her most crucial tool: her arm. That means when we meet her, she’s deep in the anger stage of grief that causes her to lash out. Even at a new cancer support group, where she’s scolded by the group’s host Linda (Laketa Caston). But then Donna meets Sam (Johnny Whitworth), a quantum physicist with a groundbreaking machine that connects to a subatomic universe. One with the added bonus of curing cancer. But in their desperation for a scientific breakthrough and miracle cure, the blurred ethical lines lead to catastrophic consequences.
There’s not an ounce of fat in the brisk 83-minute runtime; Reeder hits the ground running in establishing the grim stakes for Donna. Even more so with Rishi (Nik Dodani), a stand-up comedian facing mortality with his advanced stage cancer, and Linda. But Reeder handles this aspect with utmost care, ensuring that, despite the sci-fi, it’s depicted authentically. That goes far in instilling rooting interest and empathy.
It’s matched by the effortless, charismatic swagger of Sam; Whitworth channels Jeff Bridges’ “The Dude” for his atypically warm physicist looking for a mutually beneficial partnership to test his miracle machine. Whitworth’s charisma and wit blur the ambiguity of Sam, but it’s Namerode’s ability to toggle between the seriousness of Donna’s dilemma and the wackier comedic moments that’s a trickier needle to thread. And she does it well.
Reeder unspools the shaky morals that give way to something far more sinister with crisp style. The vibrant hues and production design, particularly around the titular machine that serves as a gateway between universes, further draw you into this intimate story. Zach Clark’s editing keeps the momentum building at a steady clip while adding visual interest through stylized transitions. The style flourishes helps when the somberness of mortality occasionally clashes with the quirky off-beat sense of humor that’s closely tethered to the horror.
That this is a smaller effort means that the horror isn’t as prominent as it could be; Reeder focuses on character work first and foremost to ensure its final punchline lands- and it does. But when Reeder does let the horror loose, the practical effects more than make up for the wait. The A-Frame brings the appropriate level of viscera, slime, and goop.
The A-Frame doesn’t quite do enough to avoid direct comparisons to films like The Fly or From Beyond, but it is a quick, mean, and gruesome morality play with a perfect ending that’ll leave you in stitches or reaching for the barf bag. Likely both.
The A-Frame made its World Premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival. Release TBD.
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