The Home Depot of Dr. Caligari: The Adams Family Tells Us Where the Devil Roams!
Yellow Veil Pictures has been picking a ton of winners lately.
After making a splash with 2019’s “The Deeper You Dig” and last year’s “Hellbender,” the Adams family (not that one) have returned with another feature just one year later. The filmmaking collective is known for making independent films on and around their property in upstate New York. John Adams, his wife Toby Poser, and their daughters Zelda and Lulu Adams have been writing, directing, producing, and acting in their own films for years, and I’m probably missing a few jobs. They do just about all of it. Their latest film from Yellow Veil Pictures, “Where the Devil Roams,” is their most ambitious project yet. Under the banner of their production company Wonder Wheel Productions, they've crafted a dark fable about a family of carnies who murder wealthy people during one winter of The Great Depression. If that sounds like a Rob Zombie movie, well, he wishes. Sorry, Rob.
Maggie (Toby Poser) smiling for the family’s holiday card.
Maggie (Poser) is the matriarch who cares for her husband Seven (John Adams), a WWI vet suffering from PTSD, and their mute teenage daughter, Eve (Zelda Adams). Eve doesn’t speak, but she sings in the trio’s carnival act, which struggles to find an audience. The main act is Mr. Tipps (Sam Rodd), who cuts off his fingers, which “miraculously”' grow back later. This early detail is sidelined for a while, as we watch the family go about their lives, occasionally killing and stealing the rich. including the banker who repossessed their farm. It’s not until late in the film where Mr. Tipps’s secret has to save the family from falling apart, quite literally.
John Adams (L) and Lulu Adams (R) settle disagreements like a family.
Like some of the best indies, you can tell “Where the Devil Roams” doesn’t have a huge budget, but it never looks cheap. The family’s trademark harsh lighting and use of negative space contribute to the film’s German Expressionism-by-way-of-“Wisconsin Death Trip” aesthetic. No, the book, not the Static-X album. There’s still a touch of the hard stuff since the family’s metal band H6llb6nd6r (God hates vowels) plays several songs on the soundtrack. Though it’s obviously anachronistic, it compliments the frigid winter setting and even adds an unexpected groove to a few montages.
When Zelda Adams isn’t directing, she’s acting, but still directing.
The tight framing of many shots add a picturesque quality, which is hammered home by Eve, who takes actual pictures of the post-murder carnage. It’s never clear why she takes the photos, or why Maggie, ostensibly the mastermind behind the murders, allows it. We don’t even know why she’s selectively mute. While Eve sometimes feels more like a collection of traits, Zelda Adams brings an ethereal quality that makes her the audience surrogate. Like Anna Paquin in “The Irishman,” she’s a silent observer who almost seems numb to her parents’ actions. Conversely, Maggie and Seven are deeply haunted. Seven is unable to stand the sight of blood, so Maggie dutifully blindfolds him before each kill, ever the mama bear. It’s one of several touchingly morbid details about the trio. They truly care for each other in a way that can’t be faked.
John and Toby between murder set pieces.
The period setting makes the film feel bigger than previous Wonder Wheel films, yet it still feels like a very personal story. Even the grotesque murders and Grand Guignol stage shows are analogous to the work the family does in real life. Entertainment can look like a gnarly business, especially with Trey Lindsay’s impressive special effects. Dubbed the “fifth Adams,” he does stellar work contributing to the look of the world, both real and unreal. Besides the multiple limb severances, Seven has WWI flashbacks, which sell the horror of war and his hemophobia in dual measure. The last shot of the film in particular is beautifully grotesque.
Trey Lindsay (right) adding a touch of red.
“Where the Devil Roams'' is different from “Hellbender,” which is different from “The Deeper You Dig.” It’s a dark, cold tale with a warm, beating heart, and the best film they’ve made so far. Their DIY aesthetic has leveled up tremendously and we should look out for what they do next. Maybe a H6llb6nd6r musical?
“Where the Devil Roams” is in select theaters now and on demand. For more information, check out https://www.wonderwheelproductions.com.
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