[yasr_overall_rating]
A documentary exploring genre based monster art takes an odd turn when the filmmakers are contacted by a man who claims he can prove that monsters are indeed real.
“Digging up the Marrow” was directed by Adam Green. He is the brainchild responsible for such horror films like “Hatchet,” “Hatchet II” and “Frozen” (not the animated film, although some parents might look at it as pure horror after its 500th viewing) so it’s safe to say that Mr. Green is a horror film aficionado, having been inspired by horror films growing up. I had heard so many good things about this film before seeing it and I was excited to have the opportunity to view it as the horror genre is one of my absolute favorites but after the final credits began to roll, I sat there for what felt like an eternity at the suddenness of the ending, waiting for the next scene to fade in but nothing. It was over. And that as they say, is that.
Mr. Green plays himself, or to be more precise, a filmed version of himself and many well-known horror directors and actors cameo throughout the movie playing, yep, you guessed it, themselves. We meet Kane Hodder (Jason in “Friday the 13th” Parts 7-10), Tony Todd (The “Candyman” and “Final Destination” films), Steven Barton (creator of Dread Central), Mick Garris (director of TVs “The Stand,” “Critters 2”) and Tom Holland (“Fright Night” and “Child’s Play”) to name but a few. Adam spends a lot of the movie talking to us, the audience, via camera, à la “The Blair Witch Project.” He informs us that a man named William Dekker (Ray Wise) has contacted him and has proof that monsters are real and very much alive.
Initially very skeptical, Adam and his cameraman Will head out to interview him but it is William’s eccentric and unconventional idiosyncrasies that keep Adam’s attention when everyone else involved with the project are convinced it is a hoax. William takes them out into the middle of the woods where they come across a large hole in the ground which William calls “The Marrow.” He informs them that all of society’s rejects, deformed children, contorted and misshapen humans, disappear into the Marrow where they live normal lives with each other far underground, away from the hustle and bustle of the human world above. Adam and Will laugh it off but then strange things begin to happen.
The movie is a mockumentary disguised as a documentary which so badly wants to be the next “Blair Witch Project” but instead, it comes across as a narcissistic vanity project for Mr. Green and his real-life associates. Even the dependable Ray Wise comes across as obnoxious and contentious in the early part of the movie so when the proverbial shit hits the fan, we have no pity for him. I never once bought that I was watching believable characters in unbelievable situations and the end of the movie is so abrupt, it leaves you wondering if everyone involved with the production ran out of ideas as to how to actually finish the film and just let the screen cut to black, with no explanation whatsoever.
The thought of a horror filmmaker such as Mr. Green, shooting a documentary about the possibility of real-life monsters, is appealing, especially for horror fans but I feel the movie would have worked so much better had they actually used unknown actors pretending to be horror filmmakers rather than real-life filmmakers pretending to be exaggerated versions of themselves. There are a few genuinely scary scenes when the filmmakers finally meet the monsters but these few scenes are not enough to save the movie. Recommended only for the innumerable accumulation of horror cameos.
Available on Blu-ray, DVD and Digital Video now
