Fest Track On Sirk TV Film Review: SHELBY OAKS [Fantasia Film Festival 2024 - Montreal, Quebec]

The aspect of horror reflects in situationS and emotional resonance. The aspect of how visibility and context can’t make up for the unknown plays heavily in the plot progression of “Shelby Oaks” [World Premiere] directed by Chris Stuckman. While some parts of the film have certain would be cliches to them, certain other details are beautifully set up but not fully delivered on. The center piece of the story is Riley (Sarah Durn) who has a certain 6th sense before she becomes a You Tube sensation with her hosts in a show called “Paranormal Paranoids”. Their journey ends when they arrive in the small town of Shelby Oaks. The first half of the film tries to lull the audience in with a sense of a documentary film before switching on a very specific act (which is main jump of the film).

Mia (Camille Eavans) is Riley’s sister looking into her disappearance while uncovering a certain mythology. The reality of the story is that it follows a certain formula except in certain instances. One towards the end is fantastic but never truly explained or truly built upon. That world is the one that is more interesting but perhaps a little more ethereal in its setting. When the film does come to bear, it makes sense but there was a slight snickering in some of the set ups particularly with the central husband character and his quips and the obviousness of the ending villain per se. “Shelby Oaks” is presented by Mike Flanagan (which is cool in the pure fact of him presenting something) but the question becomes presentation in and of itself. “Shelby Oaks” is effective in certain ways but not overly so. B-

By Tim Wassberg