Whispers From A Shallow Grave
Directed By Ted Newsom
Released: 1999
Starring: Trudi Keck, Gerald Brodin, Gwen Brownson, and Lateefah Devoe
Running Time: 90 minutes
DVD Released By Tempe DVD 2007

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The ghost of model Linda Sobek (played by Trudi Keck) talks about her life and the events that led up to her homicide. Photographer Charles Rathbun (Gerald Brodin) was the last person to see her alive and is the police’s chief suspect in the case. We see as he is captured by police and confesses to the crime all the while swearing it was an accident. Linda travels back and forth through time as she narrates different accounts of her murder at the hands of Rathbun.

True crime film? Failed. Haunting tale of a ghost recanting her final hours? Failed. Brutal and sickening representations of rape? A+! Oh man, here we go. Whispers From A Shallow Grave comes from director Ted Newsom (Evil Spawn, The Naked Monster) and is easily one of the worst indie productions I’ve seen in a while. The is story is interesting and the unveiling of “what really happened” is quite good when it is compared to the killer’s testimony but God damn, what a lifeless delivery! The victim confronting her killer is a very cool concept but thanks to the drab package it's delivered in, I couldn’t have cared less.

Gerald Brodin is quite good as serial rapist and murderer Charles Rathbun. Brodin plays Rathbun as an utterly bland POS prone to moments of rage without a single ounce of humanity in his entire body. I have to give actress Trudi Keck some credit. She is not a very good actress but she is definitely sincere in her performance. The two leads in this film are given an immense amount of screentime and given the lackluster direction, it’s no wonder that things fell apart.

Whispers From A Shallow Grave is an endurance challenge if there ever was one. As a viewer, part of your mind will grow stronger during this experience but part of it will be destroyed forever. An important part? I can’t remember. The incorporation of footage from the actual court proceedings is pretty ridiculous as the film never comes close to the quality of even the worst true crime documentary. And why is it that during the rape scenes, the direction is suddenly sharper? Do I want to know?

Whispers From A Shallow Grave fails in nearly every aspect. It does succeed at being very trashy and exploitative so it isn’t a complete loss. The fact that it is based on a real case seems to be what the director was depending on for atmosphere. Perhaps one day, someone will make a halfway decent documentary of the Sobek murder case. The coolest part about this film is its title. I can’t really express my bristling hot hatred for this movie because it’s just too dull to get worked up about.

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DVD Stuff:

Whispers From A Shallow Grave looks pretty good on DVD (it was originally shot on video). The picture is full frame but looks to be in its accurate aspect ratio. There is an audio commentary from director Ted Newsom and the film’s stars Trudi Keck and Gerald Brodin. Having the track turned on during is really the only way to get through the film. There are a ton of trailers from Tempe DVD. Check them out.

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Links:

For more info, check out Tempe DVD.

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Quotes:

“I mean it was like… I don’t know like… a movie star vanished or something.”