This ingenious feature debut follows two friends (played by co-directors Derek Lee and Clif Prowse) who set out to travel the world. But the trip soon takes a dark and bloody turn when one of the men shows signs of a mysterious affliction that gradually takes over his entire body.
Derek and Clif (filmmakers Derek Lee and Clif Prowse) have been best friends forever. When Derek is diagnosed with a potentially fatal health condition, the duo decides to take the trip of a lifetime. Setting out to go to the ends of the Earth together, they plan to record and upload video diaries for their friends to follow back home.
Before they can get any farther than Europe, though, the trip takes a dark turn. After picking up a cute girl in a club, Derek is discovered in their hotel room, bloodied and unconscious. Embarrassed, he brushes the incident off at first. That is, until he starts to change.
Unable to eat and on the verge of starvation, yet able to crack stone with his fists, Derek is traumatized but also incredibly curious about his transformation. All the while, Clif continues to record....
First-time feature filmmakers Lee and Prowse exhibit natural ease as storytellers, and have succeeded in creating a fresh and unique take on a supernatural origin story. Afflicted avoids the trap of most POV-based concepts by investing in characters the audience can relate to and has a stake in.
Footage that's meant to provide a lifetime's worth of fond travel memories may now become evidence in a criminal investigation — or a chronicle of something even more shocking.
COLIN GEDDES
Screenings
Ryerson Theatre
Scotiabank 5
Scotiabank 9