Friends and Other Monsters: 'Ezrulie' Review
Making and keeping friends is one of those tricky life things that people can do but can’t always explain. It’s on par with sexual chemistry in that oftentimes, there’s no real understanding as to what draws together and binds two different people. If you’re one of those people who has a “squad”, the explanation gets even stickier. Is it as simple as having similar interests? Is it just our human need for socialization that drives it then our actions that cement it? Why do some friendships fade out while others seem to last despite personality differences and location distances?
We’re finally realizing the importance of friendships into adulthood, where once they were considered secondary to a primary romantic relationship. As our society gets less laser-focused on the idea of ‘the one and only’, friends are seen as less disposable in our older years than they once were. The trickle-down into film means that we get movies centered around friend groups navigating more than just high school and growing up. In the case of Erzulie, the friends in question are navigating the utterly inexplicable.
Erzulie is a female-forward creature feature about a mythical mermaid living in the bayou of swamp country. In Hatian mythology, Erzulie is a goddess of love connected to arts, water, and femininity. In this movie, the group of women who stumble across her unleash her power without understanding it, and aren’t entirely sure if they love or hate what she’s doing. But this well-worn horror set-up of a group of female friends meeting for a vacation unfolds to a stranger and unexpected story with Erzulie.
At a rented house by a river, the women arrive for a long weekend bonding session, two of them having recently faced intense life changes. Fay (Zoe Graham) has just left her abusive boyfriend, and Wendy (Courtney Olivier) has just been laid off from a job she was very passionate about. A local warns them away from swimming or tubing in the river, telling them there was an alligator attack not too long ago and the creature is still at large. The group comes across a naked Erzulie (Leila Annastasia Scott) near the bank of the river. She looks like she’s been beaten up and needs medical attention but when she’s conscious, she won’t let them take her anywhere. There’s friction between some of the friends, and as weird circumstances start to take place, the friction gets worse.
Fay’s abusive boyfriend shows up dead in their pool with his heart torn out, and none of the friends can agree on what to do. Wendy wants everyone to come together but Fay, enraged by the murder of her ex, is disgusted by the entire situation. Erzulie reminds Fay that she only brought forth what Fay asked for. Except Fay is positive she didn’t ask for this. As Erzulie explains her powers, and we see the motivations of characters unfold, the schism in the group becomes deeper. Rhett (Jason Kirkpatrick), a toxic-waste dumping local, appears to be closing in, and Ezrulie’s unabated bloodshed is painting a trail right to her and by proxy the friends.
The substantial amount of practical effects and gore coupled with how fast everything spiraled out of control once Erzulie got there was a surprise. The movie spends a lot of time fleshing out the characters and their relationships so I wasn’t sure how vicious Erzulie was going to be. She’s not entirely vicious but she’s decisive: once she sets her sights on killing Fay’s boyfriend, he’s floating heartless in the pool. Erzulie isn’t a shark, gator, or any other kind of creature hunting for sport and food; she’s on a mission.
Director Christine Chen, who co-wrote the script with Camille Gladney, turned rented home interiors into claustrophobic cages for arguments, yet still gives space to the wilderness when the women are out exploring or looking for help. The crux of the movie is less about punishing people who have wronged you; the real question posed by Erzulie, both the film and the goddess in said film, is what do people do when faced with getting anything they want?
Far and away, the best scenes of this film is when Erzulie is making an appearance, be it in human form or as a mermaid. The effects are solid and simple – Erzulie herself has an impishly regal design done with makeup and prosthetics, and the shots of the mermaid rising out of the river house’s pool with Justin’s blood still spiraling in the water was equally chilling and captivating. There’s not as much of the mermaid visually as I would have liked though I know that’s due to financial limitations. What’s there looks so good that I wish we got to see more of it.
In the dramatic scenes, the actors don’t hit too many false notes. When they were fighting with each other or trying to escape the weird locals who know they’re hiding a creature, the characters felt realistic and unforced. It was the comedic scenes where some of the actors stumbled, delivering lines that landed flat and trying too hard on what should have been casual and sarcastic. As we all know: comedy is hard. It can be even harder when you’re filming something since so much of humor comes down to editing. A nod to Diana Rose as Ari whose comedic timing and delivery worked consistently and in a variety of ways.
Ezrulie is a summertime creature feature with extra oomph and some mermaid flair. It ties a historical legend into modern day issues on both a personal and social level. Overall, a fun and unexpected indie flick that follows then subverts horror tropes in a clever, entertaining way.
Ezrulie is distributed by Gravitas Ventures and Kamikaze Dogfight, and available on streaming platforms.
