For
some people, relationships are more frightening than ghosts and monsters. Guys
like Damien Booster are a major reason why. However, it is Booster who must
face a long night of chills and nightmares in Tyler Cole’s Philophobia: or the Fear of Falling in Love, which releases today
on VOD.
Booster
has been gaining traction as a podcaster, but that hardly makes him famous in a
town like Los Angeles. Nevertheless, he manages to impress Danielle Scott, who
starts to develop feelings for him. She even invites Booster to meet her mother
at brunch. Unfortunately, he reacts poorly, even by his standards. In fact, he
butchers the moment so badly, she flatly breaks up with him.
Of
course, Booster is pained by this, but his commitment-phobia is so ingrained,
he unable to respond in any halfway appropriate manner. The visit of his old
high school buddy Alan should distract him, but instead he acts like a
self-absorbed killjoy, which he is. Granted, he has an excuse. Immediately
after the break-up, Booster starts experiencing macabre visions or
hallucinations revolving around relationship themes. There might even be some
kind of spectral energy haunting him.
Philophobia is sort of like a Christmas Carol for bad break-up, but
Booster is not explicitly visited by the Ghosts of Relationships Past, Present,
and Future. Regardless, it is stakes out some surprisingly fresh genre ground.
Old School horror fans might be disappointed the genre elements are not more
prominent and graphic, but it could well be a function of Cole’s severely
limited budget constraints (like Robert Townsend’s Hollywood Shuffle, Philophobia
was largely financed with maxed out credit cards).
What
might really surprise many viewers is the sharpness of the dialogue, written by
screenwriter Aaron Burt, who also plays Booster. Sometimes this film is painful
to watch, not due to ghoulish visuals, but because what the characters have to
say cuts so deeply.
Burt
looks more than a little like Chase Williamson and he freaks out quite
convincingly, so it is easy to accept him as Booster. Arguably, he is put
through the wringer to a greater extent than most characters in more
conventional horror movies. David Lengel counterbalances him effectively enough
as defiantly decent and unhip Alan. However, Darren Keefe Reiher, Carly Reeves,
Marissa Pistone, and Katie Keene team-up to steal the film as the unhinged
neighbor and the ladies they pick up in the bar, who make the lads’ intended
night of booze and debauchery unpredictably chaotic and outrageously funny.
Perhaps
the most inspired bits in Philophobia involve
a character who must be inspired by The
Shining. There is no question the film is rough, but hey, you try to do
better with a 12-pack and a handful of Metrocards. The fact is, Philophobia is likely to resonate with a
lot of viewers—and for those whom it does, I feel for you all. Recommended for
genre fans interested in new talent and realistic relationships, Philophobia is now available on VOD
platforms.
