The Id (4/5)

The Id is a horror thriller featuring an extremely dysfunctional family. Yet it doesn’t seem unrealistic, which is the scariest part.

Actually, the scariest part of The Id is how amazing Amanda Wyss and Patrick Peduto are. I’m a child of the 1980s, so to me, Amanda Wyss is one of those faces I feel like I’ve known my entire life.

I grew up watching her in Better Off Dead (cult classic starring John Cusack), which I’ve seen more times than I can count. And then – of course – most horror fans should recognize her from Wes Craven’s original A Nightmare on Elm Street.

Sure, I haven’t seen Amanda Wyss in much recently – outside guest roles on TV shows – but that’s clearly my loss! She is so scary good in this movie.

She will scare you senseless with her despair and anger, but all the time, your heart will also go out to her. Having watched The Id, I feel like I’ve been robbed of seeing this amazing actress in movies on a regular basis.

Amanda Wyss plays the character of Meridith, who isn’t completely right in the head. But honestly, I doubt anyone would be after having led the life she has. She lives with her ailing father, who’s portrayed with an insanely uncomfortable malice by Patrick Peduto.

He is miserable. And he wants to make everyone around him equally miserable. Unfortunately, the two of them is all there’s left of the dysfunctional family.

The Id is a very different kind of horror movie from what you might expect. But I can assure you, it is very scary indeed. Not in the paranormal sense or with a Freddy Krueger type villain. No, it’s scary in the sense that it shows how you can lose your entire life.

If you’re scared of leaving behind what you know? Or you simply have no faith in yourself? Well, one day you might realize that you’ve been standing still for 20 years, while everyone else moved forward.

The sad truth about time

Meridith has been stuck at home for most of her life, so when an old flame suddenly calls her, she instantly sees a way out. Immediately, she starts dreaming of the life she could’ve been living. Or maybe she still can?

That’s the thing she’s battling with while having her father constantly yelling at her. Atnd when I say “yelling at her”, I do mean he yells, but also, he says the most horrible things. Things most people would never say to any other human being. Well, except for when they’re anonymous on the Internet. Then it seems like this father’s behavior and language is perfectly normal. However, this family lives in a bubble, and there’s no Internet.

In fact, it’s difficult to gage when The Id takes place. However, it’s very clear that the outside world seems a lot more current than anything inside this house. They watch old black and white TV shows on an old TV and only have an old landline telephone. You know the kind with a cord that could reach from one end of the house to the other.

And I love the way this is portrayed. For Meridith, it doesn’t matter what the world actually looks like now. She’s not participating in is anyway. Sad thing is, time stops for no one, and this is what she realizes when the surprise phone call from her prom date comes.

A very uncomfortable movie, but an amazing story

When you’re watching The Id – and you really should – then you will definitely be uncomfortable. And you will want to look away. Just like Meridith would prefer to look away from everything. Unfortunately, after years of abuse by her father, his words are constantly in her head. Even when he’s sleeping or nowhere near her, she can imagine what he would say to her.

The are so many uncomfortable scenes in this movie. And I love and applaud it for that. I mean, not many would dare show these things. Even if we all know this is actually real life for many people. People grow bitter from something bad that happened in their life and make it their life goal to make everyone else as miserable as they are. Plain and simple. Cruel as hell, but also very sad.

The Id is written by Sean H. Stewart and it’s his feature film debut. This is an incredibly brave and powerful story to start out with, so hopefully, he has a lot more on the way. I ‘d definitely want to see anything written by him!

Also, this movie marks the feature film debut of director Thommy Hutson, who is very familiar with horror. He wrote and produced a number of horror documentaries that looked into the biggest horror franchise hits. Among these are Scream: The Inside Story from 2011, His Name Was Jason: 30 Years of Friday the 13th from 2009 and Never Sleep Again: The Elm Street Legacy in 2010. Obviously, the latter starred Amanda Wyss as Freddy Krueger’s very first victim, so he’s certainly familiar with her work.

Actually, Thommy Hutson approached Amanda Wyss with this script, since he wanted her to play the role. And I’m sure he’s very happy she agreed. I certainly am! Amanda Wyss herself described this movie as “A delicious stew of madness”, which I think sums it up perfectly. Do yourself a huge favor, and watch this movie.

The Id premiered at Hollywood Independent Film Festival in early 2016, and is now available on Blu-ray. Again, make sure you watch this!

Details

Director: Thommy Hutson
Writer: Sean H. Stewart
Cast: Amanda Wyss, Patrick Peduto, Jamye Grant

Plot

A lonely woman caring for her domineering father is pushed to the brink when a figure from her past re-enters her life.