Guest (2020 film)
Guest | |
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File:Guestposter.png | |
Directed by | Finn Callan |
Written by | Finn Callan |
Produced by | Ivan Veselov |
Starring |
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Cinematography | Fyodor Houtheusen |
Edited by | Trifa Keedo |
Music by | Oxxymoron |
Production company | Project Violet Productions |
Release date |
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Running time | 12 minutes |
Country | United Kingdom |
Language | English |
Guest is a 2020 British psychological horror short film directed and written by Finn Callan. It stars Melania Crisan as a disturbed young woman who wakes up in a strangers house with several injuries after encountering a creature called The Guest. The film also stars Jessica Munna and Anna Fraser. The film premiered on 27 August 2020 at FrightFest and, on 24 December 2020, was uploaded to YouTube.
Upon release, the film received very positive reviews from critics, praising the film's direction, cinematography, monster design and special effects. A sequel is currently in development.
Plot
Mary, a frightened young woman, wakes up in the bedroom of a stranger's house with injuries that have left her partially blind and deaf. The homeowner (The Woman), who bandaged her up after discovering her in the bathroom that morning, manages to slightly restore her hearing by inserting a hearing aid device into her ear and asks her what happened.
In a flashback sequence, Mary remembers the previous night where she was chased through the countryside by a tall, slender humanoid creature with no eyelids called The Guest. During the chase, Mary finds The Woman's house and breaks inside to escape from The Guest. Finding the house empty, Mary quickly arms herself with a knife from the kitchen and hides in the bathroom, only to discover that The Guest is waiting for her inside. Seemingly driven mad by The Guest's presence, Mary pours a bottle of bleach over her eyes to blind herself. Upon hearing The Guest's rattling breathing however, Mary grabs the knife and plunges it into her ears, causing herself to go partially deaf as she was at the start of the film.
Frightened at Mary's explanation of the previous night, The Woman quickly leaves the room and locks the door, trapping Mary inside. Mary then pulls back her bandages to see that The Guest sitting on the bed next to her. Mary reclines in the bed and braces herself for it to attack her. Instead, The Guest turns away from her and looks at the floor with a sad expression on its face, much to Mary's surprise and confusion. The film then abruptly ends.
Cast
- Melania Crisan as Mary
- Jessica Munna as The Woman
- Anna Fraser as The Guest
Production
Monster design
Finn Callan looked to various pre-existing works for inspiration for The Guest's design and which he brought together like a "jigsaw" and had the film's prosthetics artist Francesca Giacovelli illustrate. He cited films such as The Draggs from Fantastic Planet, the Fishermen from Balance and Christiane from Eyes Without a Face as the key inspirational points during the process.[1]
Special effects
Deciding early on that the special effects to create The Guest would be all practical, Callan enlisted the help of Francesca to create the elaborate special effects make up which took 6 hours to apply to Anna Fraser who played The Guest, who Callan said compared the process to "being buried alive".[2]
Release and reception
The short film was first shown on at FrightFest on 27 August 2020 and then went around the American horror film festival circuit, premiering in North America at Screamfest on 8 October. During its festival run, it received acclaim from various horror publications, praising the film's direction, cinematography, special effects and monster design.[3][4][5]
On 24 December 2020, Callan uploaded the short to YouTube with a suicide prevention disclaimer placed before the film. The short film quickly became popular and, as of July 2022, has received over 6 million views on the site.[6] Several notable YouTubers have reacted to Guest on YouTube since its upload, including Jacksepticeye.
Festival selections
- 2020 - FrightFest (World Premiere)[7]
- 2020 - Screamfest Horror Film Festival[8]
- 2020 - Telluride Horror Show[9]
- 2020 - Knoxville Horror Film Festival[10]
- 2020 - New York City Horror Film Festival
- 2020 - IFI HorrorThon
- 2020 - 6ix Screams International Horror Film Festival
- 2020 - HorrorFest International
- 2020 - HorrOrigins Film Festival
References
- ^ "A Young Woman Attempts to Rid Herself of An Otherworldly Creature in Finn Callan's 'Guest'". twelvecabins.com. 30 August 2020. Retrieved 22 May 2021.
- ^ "Exclusive Interview: Finn Callan talks GUEST". dreadcentral.com. 26 August 2020. Retrieved 22 May 2021.
- ^ "GUEST Review – An Unsettling Short With A Truly Ghastly Antagonist". dreadcentral.com. 25 August 2020. Retrieved 22 May 2021.
- ^ "[Review] Guest (Arrow Video FrightFest): A Fleeing Woman Has Every Reason To Be Terror-Stricken In Chilling Short Film". gruesomemagazine.com. 29 August 2020. Retrieved 22 May 2021.
- ^ "Guest short film review". ukfilmreview.co.uk. 21 August 2020. Retrieved 22 May 2021.
- ^ finncallan (24 December 2020). "GUEST - A Short Horror Film". Retrieved 22 May 2021 – via YouTube.
- ^ "FrightFest announces 2020 short film line-up". vodzille.co. 6 August 2020. Retrieved 22 May 2021.
- ^ "This Year's Screamfest Drive-in Film Festival Will Kick Off With Clive Barker's 'Books of Blood'". bloody-disgusting.com. 21 September 2020. Retrieved 22 May 2021.
- ^ "Complete Lineup Announced for TELLURIDE HORROR SHOW 2020 "Shelter-in-Place" Edition". dreadcentral.com. 9 October 2020. Retrieved 22 May 2021.
- ^ "2020 Knoxville Horror Film Festival". cinematary.com. 2 November 2020. Retrieved 22 May 2021.