Nineteen year old college freshman Natalie Mercer (Macey Shackleford) arrives at the doorstep of her psychology professor’s home. Expecting a living room full of students all gathered for an in-person experiment, she is taken aback when the enigmatic teacher Patrick Moran (Axel Knight) states that she is the only one who showed up. She chooses to stay for whatever undertaking Moran has planned, as she’s promised a decent sum of money to be a participant. Patrick begins his little exercise. He produces a mysterious coin, flipping it around while diving into private details about Natalie’s connection to her family. Slowly but surely, the questions transport the young woman on a nightmarish journey she will not soon forget.
Horror films often rely on a number of different conveniences or mishaps to set their stories in motion. It’s the genre hallmark, and its up to the writing to eliminate these issues. The premise that writer/director Jimmy Valcin puts forth to his audience is a tricky one. On one hand, you really want to know what professor Moran has in store for the evening, but on the other hand, you really want Natalie to bolt from the house as soon as the door opens. Yes, while Night Terrors will no doubt have you questioning the poor college student’s willingness to embrace this encounter, Valcin has just enough leverage to make it work.
Just like its story, the film does have some trouble finding its footing early in the acting department. Shackleford and Knight struggle to find a believable rapport, causing the conversation to come off as quite monotonous. It’s shot, reverse-shot, rinse and repeat for the whole buildup, as Moran finally begins his experiment. The short’s visual aesthetic then takes a total 180, and the actors finally settle in as well, firing on all cylinders – as the chills keep coming.
While not reinventing the wheel, it’s very impressive how smoothly Valcin manages to blend his ideas together into something simple, yet highly effective in the scare department. Perhaps a more immersive sound design could have punched them up even more, but an excellent soundtrack by Andrew Ragan keeps things suitably tense.
A redeeming second half makes Night Terrors a considerably eerie watch and a cut above the countless YouTube horror shorts out there right now.
