My initial impressions of The Gallows regard the aesthetics of the film’s setting; most notably, the production team’s goal to depict the composition of theatre, including student acting. The story takes place at a high school with a drama department possessing an unfortunate history. Twenty years earlier, a production of a dramatic play (entitled ‘The Gallows’) leads to the tragic loss of a principle actor. The new troupe sets out to recreate the production, several of the actors must find a way to leave the theatre when they get stuck indoors the night before the show.
Most of the film takes place onstage, the catwalk, greenroom, and hallways. Screenwriters pinpoint the props, set, fly system, offstage furniture and ladders.
Actors use common phrases like “break a leg” to describe what takes place during rehearsal, notably absent is the refraining of saying “Macbeth”. The name of the leading actor from the original production, “Charlie”, functions like Macbeth as it leads to misfortunate when said in the theater.
First-time filmmakers Chris Lofing and Travis Cluff make a “found footage” film similar to Paranormal Activity and Cloverfield. The audience views the story on the character’s video recordings.
The plot requires audiences to connect the dots, creating surprises along the way. However, there’s a brief scene taking place at the new protagonist’s home before leaving for the theatre, the character speaks to another in a thin exchange (by design in the script). I would have liked to see more of the discussion between the two characters, as I think it would have helped the story later in the film.
Overall, it was a pleasant experience seeing the movie in theatres, and I wanted to gauge the lasting impression of the cinematography by visiting my former school theatre. I would recommend the film to fans of the genre.