Found footage and true crime are two genres that don’t exactly send me scrambling to the theatre. The format has been done to death, and though not necessarily together, some unique idea has to be pitched before I’ll pay attention, be it paranormal or something else. Hunting Matthew Nichols is one of those films, and it deserves a fair look since it may involve something lurking in them thar woods, to pardon the phrase. In this case, it’s about finding the recording itself and examining it, rather than displacing the narrative from who is watching whom.
And if the buzz around this film is any indication, this regionally made independent production getting a ton of Hollywood attention might be the one to make people say, let’s check this out. Now playing at theatres nationwide, this work from director Markian Tarasiuk, who also acts in the film because apparently sleeping is overrated, and screenwriter Sean Harris Oliver blends true crime drama with the supernatural.
The story follows Tara Nichols (Miranda MacDougall), a documentary filmmaker who sets out to solve the decades-old disappearance of her brother Matthew (James Ross) on Vancouver Island. When a disturbing piece of video evidence surfaces, the investigation stops feeling theoretical real fast. If that setup sounds vaguely familiar, that’s entirely on purpose. The film was directly inspired by the 1999 release of The Blair Witch Project, which is a bold creative move that either takes nerve or a whole lot of confidence. From what the festival circuit has told us, the answer is probably both.
This actress may well be best known as Izzy Bowin, aka The Fiddler, in CW’s The Flash. Although that character was given a new life following the events of Crisis on Infinite Earths, it’s perhaps her work here that will cement her as a genre favourite. Joining her are Ryan Alexander McDonald and Christine Willes, a Vancouver theatre veteran with genre credits that include Dead Like Me, Trick ‘r Treat, and If I Stay.
The immersive alternate reality game offered through the official website challenges amateur detectives to find out where these boys have gone, and it’s the kind of world-building that turns a movie release into an event. Much of the northern part of this island still remains unexplored. As for where they went, interested viewers will have to check this film out. This region doesn’t have a lot of cryptids to its name. The famous ones tend to exist in the Interior, not out here on the coast!
That said, Islanders have their own legends to fear. For this particular case, the Basket Ogress makes a certain kind of sense. She is a marauding giant common to the folklore of many Northwest Coast peoples, existing in a world where cautionary tales carry real weight. She prefers naughty and careless children to stuff into her container, and once back in her lair, she’ll cook them up. Luckily, she is rather dim-witted, and her prey usually manages to escape.
Although any Indigenous folklore connection isn’t played up in the trailer, we’re left to guess who might have taken these two boys, and whether they’ll ever return. In a broader sense, the deep, dense forest is often treated as a portal to another world that few can find their way back from. In the northernmost regions, closer to Alaska, there are tree demons known as the Kushtaka. They are known to kidnap people, and it’s possible to imagine them taking up residence in the quiet, remote islands of British Columbia. For those of us who have been long time residents of this massive island, there’s an extra layer of unease in knowing those foggy northern forests in the trailers are basically in our backyard.
Hunting Matthew Nichols Trailer
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