When the Trash Man Knocks, 2023.
Directed by Christopher Wesley Moore.
Starring Jo-Ann Robinson, Christopher Wesley Moore, Meredith Mohler, Deenie Castleberry, and Cami Roebuck.
SYNOPSIS:
A small Southern town’s Thanksgiving turns deadly when a deranged killer, the Trash Man, resurfaces to create his nightmarish version of a family, forcing a mother and son to confront their worst fears.
Thanksgiving seems to be the one holiday that triggers the most trauma in people. You have the family get-togethers with people who barely get along. You have people either invading your house, or you must venture to a new local with just your pumpkin pie in hand. It’s a hectic holiday, but adding the long-standing fear of a trash man-killer returning to finish you off would add a layer of hell.
That’s the premise of When the Trash Man Knocks; you’re watching a traumatized mother and son face their fears when a slasher returns years later to finish making his own twisted family. It’s a familiar tale, told with familiar slasher stylings, but the layered script and deep look at how family trauma sits within our soul, manifesting in the worst ways, keep this afloat.
As you venture deeper into the film, you start discovering the killings aren’t even the scariest part, but the absolute horror lies in what you can conjure up just in your head.
With Thanksgiving fast approaching, Caroline is struggling with the memories of a brutal massacre that took her husband and one of her sons. That left the mother stuck in the house with only the voice of her sadistic mother in her ear. This trauma also affects her son, Justin, who is trying to find a normal amidst his issues.
Caroline and Justin have a mother-and-son relationship that seems strong but also seems a few steps away from going full Norman and Norma Bates. Since Caroline refuses to leave home, Justin is equally strapped to the house, even when a budding romance and job offers await him. You instantly feel for both characters, seeing their PTSD manifest in hallucinations. None of this is helped when the killer that attacked their family, the Trash Man, comes knocking around the neighborhood looking for victims.
It’s a simple set-up, but it also allows the film to avoid its slasher tropes and focus more on psychological horror, which the director and star Christopher Wesley Moore crafts skillfully. Moore knows what scares him, and it’s not just blood and guts, but it’s the horrid world we live in and how cruel it could be living in your own head.
The psychological scares still take precedence as we go deeper into the movie, and the slasher killings pick up (primarily to characters we care very little about). It isn’t until the very end that we are smacked in the face by both the horror and the mental games.
With the film being a low-budget indie horror, you can expect the budget – or lack thereof – to be seen. And you sadly do feel it, mainly within the costuming. The Trash Man wears a fairly horrible get-up, and the same goes for the ghost of Caroline’s mother. Both will thrust you out of the film, especially when you’re so immersed in the tragic tale unfolding. That’s a shame, too, as it’s clear director Christopher Wesley Moore obviously knows what he’s doing, but it seems like his bold ambitions are starting to outgrow the smaller budgets within the indie world.
The same goes for the film’s strange cinematography; with decent sound design and a strong script, you can look past some rough camera work, but When the Trash Man Knocks often lacks a real polished look. A lot of the more basic shot composition feels off, breaking standard cinema rules, which throws you off. With that being said, the colors used to light scenes and some of the POV shots feel inventive and refreshing, letting you know there is some skill on display here.
And while Caroline, played to utter perfection by Jo-Ann Robinson, you can tell not every actor understood the assignment. It’s much like watching one of my other favorite low-budget horror films, Sleepaway Camp. In that film, it’s clear which cast members know what to deliver, and it’s very clear about the ones who don’t. This film is the same; some actors feel lost in this weird universe. Christopher Wesley Moore does his best with the role of Justin, but it’s clear that he is stronger behind the camera than in front of it. With a bit more money to fuel his dreams, he could complete the balancing act of directing and starring better, but for now, Moore needs to focus on honing his already strong directing skills even more.
In ways, When the Trash Man Knocks feels ripped out of the era of strange horror films you’d find at the video store. I can mainly compare it to 1987’s Blood Rage, another Thanksgiving-set slasher. Both films have very bold choices in their scripts, even when the budget calls for them to scale back their big ideas.
Still, we don’t capitalize on the terror that lies within Thanksgiving time enough, and I’m happy to see a filmmaker tackle the external slashing and the internal horror. This time of year can be terrifying for some, and Moore brings out that fear very well in what could be his signature cult classic.
Flickering Myth Rating – Film: ★ ★ ★ / Movie: ★ ★ ★
EJ Moreno
