Mercury Screams (2018)
The 12th episode of “Regional Speculative Paranormal Research Program” caused a sensation when it aired on October 18th, 1984. The subject of the program: A husband and wife attempt to escape the trauma of losing a child by starting their lives over. These two damned souls don’t know what horrors await them in the form of an inter-dimensional satanic force. This televised supernatural psychodrama wrought havoc on the prenatal wards within the small area of its transmission. Were these horrific events foretold and was this only the beginning?
This short film by writer/director/producer Dan Wilder does something that every horror short should aspire to, which is to leave the viewer wanting more. I wish that Mercury Screams was feature length and I hope that there are more pieces of this dark puzzle coming soon. The subject matter is wildly disturbing but the faux cable access presentation makes for some evil fun. It’s lovingly filmed and edited with a retro flair. The film feels like a lost transmission from a demented Earth that went off its axis in the mid-1980s mixed with a doomsday cult’s recruitment VHS tape.