Director/writer: Travis Betz | Rated: n/a | Review date: 14-Mar-2010

Lo is one of those rare films that has the ability to tread multiple genres while not adhering to the rules or conventions of any specific one exclusively. The story is fairly simple. A guy named Justin (Ward Roberts) is in love. His peculiar and mysterious girlfriend April (Sarah Lassez) goes missing. Desperate Justin will stop at nothing to get his love back, even if that means tampering with the dark side and putting his own life on the line.

Using a necronomicon-esque book left behind by April, Justin summons a demon named Lo (Jeremiah Birkett) from the confines of his dark apartment. A reluctant and chain smoking Lo amuses itself while listening to Justin plea for the demon to find April. Justin is soon introduced to a bizarre and dark world of demons and their deceitful nature. However, Justin shakes of his fears and uncertainties for the sake of love (oh, what crazy things we do when we’re in love).

The film never leaves the dark apartment. The dialog is almost always between only two characters, and sometimes with only our protagonist and himself. The dialog and setting make the film feel almost like a filmed play. As a matter of fact, as Justin and Lo flashback of Justin’s memories of him and April, the memories play out on a makeshift stage complete with an audience track. I found this aspect of the film to be surprisingly enjoyable. While one would think the simplistic nature of the story and setting would make it a bore, the film becomes everything but.

It is truly hard to classify this piece as any specific genre. I suppose it falls into horror due to its dark nature and of course the demons. However Lo is no scary chiller and is far from a gore fest. There are some dark visuals but they become well balanced by the clever and humorous dialog. It also treads romance territory with its fairly straight forward love story. There is even a musical sequence performed by a band of demons that I very much enjoyed. Combine all these elements into one and we end up with a unique and stylish take on each genre while creating something totally new and fresh.

I was thoroughly surprised by this film. When I noticed that the film wasn’t going to leave the apartment, I was worried. Then came the theatrical elements which furthered my uncertainty. All of these elements that I typically would be put off by somehow managed to work for me in the end. The acting was superb, blending the dramatic aspects of a stage performance with some nice indie charm. Sarah Lassez was the standout for me as her beauty and funniness leads me to believe we’ll be seeing more of her. The movie’s visuals were cool and stylish while not being overly artsy.

Betz’s ability to take a basic story, put a darker twist on it, and make it something truly unique is to be applauded. Lo isn’t just a unique piece of filmmaking, but an enjoyable one that really ends up being deep and profound. It’s entertaining, emotional, dark, and touching all at the same time. I loved this film and everything that went into it and believe the final product is really a work of art. Fans of the theater, love stories, dark comedies and horror, or even fans of none of these, will find something to enjoy with Lo.
Official site/trailer | IMDb

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