Slamdance 2024 Film Festival – I have to say that I really dig the premise of the short, PU EKAW TNOD. Essentially, a couple gets sucked into a creepy basement after watching a scary movie together. The execution generally works with some truly uncanny images, too.

Directed and written by Rebecca Culverhouse, the UK film stars Harold Addo and Dorothea Jones as the unnamed couple. The short opens with them watching a horror movie, with the woman nearly burying her face in her partner’s shoulder. Clearly, she’s not a big fan of scary movies. He, meanwhile, munches popcorn and has a laugh, though he, too, is eventually disturbed by images on screen. It sets up an interesting, yet familiar dynamic, that being one half of a couple who dislikes the genre, while the other finds it entertaining, at least initially. From there, the couple is pulled into a sinister setting, after the woman confesses that the film resembles a reoccurring nightmare she has. More specifically, she fears that a dream version of herself overtakes the real her. It’s quite a mind trip alright, before she starts talking about the bad place, essentially a creepy basement where she encounters that alternate version of herself. The dialogue is well-crafted to the point it sets the tone for the eeriness and strange sequences that follow. No time is wasted in establishing a spooky atmosphere.

In just six minutes, there’s a lot to unpack, though the film never feels overwhelming to the point it’s an assault on the senses. However, the woman’s fears lead to a series of strange images in which the very bad place she describes is shown. It’s difficult to convey all that Culverhouse includes in this film, from a bit of unsettling analog horror to some truly bizarre images, especially within the last minute. It certainly makes for a memorable viewing experience.

I would love to see this short expanded into a feature. Here, we get a taste of one woman’s horrifying visions. I’d like to explore the bad place some more.

7.5 out of 10