After countless important film works including. Red Krokodil, Doll Syndrome, Phantasmagoria, and the saga inspired by the works of Edgar Allan Poe that is now in its third chapter (P.O.E. 3 Pieces Of Eldritch), Italian director Domiziano Cristopharo pays homage to Dylan Dog with the fan movie House of Shells, a short film of about 20 minutes. The screenplay for the film is by Andrea Cavaletto, who previously collaborated with Domitian himself by editing the script for "The Maelzel Chess Player" (P.O.E. Poetry of Eerie) e Doll Syndrome.
Domiziano Cristopharo directs an original story inspired by the Dylan Dog character created by Tiziano Sclavi, and playing the famous investigator is Stefano Cassetti, while Veronica Gentili is Vivien. Domiziano Cristopharo's fan movie involves Dylan Dog screenwriter Pasquale Ruju, the latter in the role of the shell man (the scientist's voice on the magnetophone).
An Abruzzi location surrounded by nature and antiquity is the backdrop for the story of House of Shells (Italy - 2014) in which space is immediately given to the characters Dylan and Vivien who converse with each other while looking at the landscape that surrounds them. What immediately jumps to the eye is fine direction and good cinematography with the very appropriate choice of black and white that gives the film a touch of charm. The sequences shot outdoors, outside and inside the castle are very evocative and bring to mind typical Gothic films of the past. As mentioned earlier, credit to the location and also to the perfect shots taken.
A sore point is the flat and uninteresting script to which is added an acting cast that is not up to the mark. The acting in imperfectly accented English does not bother although it is precisely the discourse between the two that may bore the viewer to some extent. A cumbersome, uninteresting dialogue played by actors who are poorly cast in the part and almost underscored by the silence that surrounds them detracts from the film's success. Stefano Cassetti's distinctive face, perfect for this part, is not enough to pay homage to Tiziano Sclavi's Dylan Dog.
Like puppets without souls, like fetishes without personalities, the two main characters move through the story twists of this fan movie without a trace of their souls. The result is an empty, forgettable film.
