What makes a movie a horror movie, or a genre movie, scares, kills, gore, a mixture of theses. We are What We Are the latest from Jim Mickle, a re-imagining of a Mexican film by Jorge Michel Grau by the same title. Now I will admit I am a big fan of Jim Mickle and Nick Damici and their previous films Mulberry Street and Stakeland.
We are What We Are is an intense, thriller about a family, the Parkers who have lived on their property since early colonial times in upstate New York. They are good God fearing folk who keep to themselves and have their traditions. The movie starts with the mother Emma Parker dying in a freak accident during a bad rain storm. This changes the family dynamic and the 2 teenage girls Iris the oldest and Rose are now thrust into the role of patron of the family. Iris and Rose both struggle with wanting to please their domineering father, while protecting their baby brother and their budding adolescence.
This family has secrets and as the movie proceeds, these secrets are slowly exposed as we see the family moving towards a climax. On a parallel path we see a doctors investigation to a mysterious discovery and the teenage daughters struggles with the realization of what role their mother had in the family. This is a family that is run by the father and their traditions have been passed down for many generations and when they are revealed I was both horrified and enthralled.
This movie moves at a good if a bit slow pace but with a film score that helps build the suspense and mood till, you know something has to happen, but will it be what we all expect. It is brilliantly shot with some dark and disturbing scenes. It does not disappoint and the ending will leave you talking for sure.
We are What We Are is an intense, thriller about a family, the Parkers who have lived on their property since early colonial times in upstate New York. They are good God fearing folk who keep to themselves and have their traditions. The movie starts with the mother Emma Parker dying in a freak accident during a bad rain storm. This changes the family dynamic and the 2 teenage girls Iris the oldest and Rose are now thrust into the role of patron of the family. Iris and Rose both struggle with wanting to please their domineering father, while protecting their baby brother and their budding adolescence.
This family has secrets and as the movie proceeds, these secrets are slowly exposed as we see the family moving towards a climax. On a parallel path we see a doctors investigation to a mysterious discovery and the teenage daughters struggles with the realization of what role their mother had in the family. This is a family that is run by the father and their traditions have been passed down for many generations and when they are revealed I was both horrified and enthralled.
This movie moves at a good if a bit slow pace but with a film score that helps build the suspense and mood till, you know something has to happen, but will it be what we all expect. It is brilliantly shot with some dark and disturbing scenes. It does not disappoint and the ending will leave you talking for sure.