Kyle Edward Ball’s “Skinamarink”

Skinamarink (2022)

This sustained atmospheric, psychological horror is like a distilled nightmare summoning childhood terrors that tap into the root of our fears

Some have compared this to “Paranormal Activity” but that is way off the mark as this is more akin to early David Lynch and Mark Jenkins with a hint of Hideo Kojima’s game “P.T.”. The only commonality it has with “Paranormal Activity” is it’s micro budget($15,000). As with Jenkins’ “Enys Men” this will reward those who allow themselves to be absorbed by the film, but in this case, this is without doubt a horror.

I don’t really want to give anything away and recommend you watch with as little information as possible. The film does spend time building the atmosphere but it isn’t long before uncanny things happen. With much of the film in darkness, shapes twist in the grainy images and the mind sometimes summons things that may or may not be there. It deftly keeps things half shadowed and much of the horror comes from the dialogue, uncertain sounds and sudden shifts in perspective.

It may not be for everyone but to me, it’s one of the most memorable and frightening cinematic experiences I’ve had in a long time. Add Kyle Edward Ball to the ever growing list of first time feature directors to whose future work I’m looking forward.