Canadian director Chris Nash says the rugged wilds of northern Ontario are a main character in his Sundance horror film, "In A Violent Nature."
The ambient slasher follows Johnny, an unforgiving, undead monster, as he trudges through the woods and systematically slaughters a group of camping teens who stole a locket from his resting grounds.
"In A Violent Nature,鈥� which is set to debut Monday in the Midnight program of the Sundance Film Festival, has no protagonists. Everything is shown from Johnny鈥檚 perspective. But Nash says the film鈥檚 eerie, arboreal setting 鈥� shot in the Algoma District near Sault Ste. Marie, Ont. 鈥� is just as much of a menace as the killer himself.
鈥淭here's no musical score, so the actual sounds of nature surround the audience when they're watching the film,鈥� Nash says from his Airbnb in Park City, Utah.
鈥淚t was paramount for us that we feel like we're in the woods at all points in time, and that we get this feeling that we are isolated in a very expansive area, where you almost feel the threat of being alone in the woods by itself, without a big, old monster man with an axe hunting you down.鈥�
When Nash and his crew began shooting in 2021, they originally settled on the Kawartha Lakes area but ended up hitting pause because the area 鈥渏ust felt like it wasn't hitting the right note for us,鈥� says the 42-year-old, who was born in Sault Ste. Marie.
They ultimately decided to restart the production in the Algoma region.
鈥淲e realized just how important the surrounding nature itself, and the type of flora around, was to the film.鈥�
Nash notes 1977 cult Canadian horror film "Rituals," directed by Peter Carter and starring Hal Holbrook, was shot in the same area.
"In A Violent Nature" is among several projects with Canadian ties premiering at Sundance. Other films debuting at the Park City festival include the Winnipeg-shot 鈥淲inner,鈥� about a whistleblower who exposed Russia鈥檚 hacking of the 2016 U.S. election, and "Sugarcane," a documentary that investigates the history of an Indigenous residential school in British Columbia.
Nash's film has already secured theatrical and streaming distribution with IFC and Shudder, which the director says "takes a lot off your plate" as far as feeling the need to shop his movie around.
Parallels can be made between 鈥淚n A Violent Nature鈥� and another Canadian Shudder film: 2022鈥檚 鈥淪kinamarink.鈥� Like Kyle Edward Ball鈥檚 critically lauded horror film, Nash鈥檚 slasher is an immersive, slow-burning experience.
鈥淚n A Violent Nature鈥� employs several familiar horror tropes 鈥� from a masked killer to bloody axe murders 鈥� but flips them on their head by injecting elements of slow cinema into the genre. Instead of jump scares, the camera shadows Johnny as he advances with a quiet and deliberate creep towards his victims. Then, we see him slay his targets 鈥� using everything from hand saws to wood chippers 鈥� in a long, methodical, excruciatingly gory manner. The murder scenes are drawn out 鈥� like watching blood dry.
鈥淚 think tropes are great, but they're so often used in the wrong way,鈥� says Nash. 鈥淲hat they definitely did for us was create a shorthand for us to deliver information to an audience, where we don't have to delve deep into any kind of backstory.鈥�
Johnny鈥檚 victims have very little dialogue, but just enough that the audience registers their archetypes: the girl next door, the jerk boyfriend, the class clown.
"Being able to communicate who these characters are very, very quickly frees up time for us to develop other aspects of the film. We can really hone in on the tone, the style, the cinematography and the overall ambience that we're presenting.鈥�
Nash was inspired by Gus Van Sant鈥檚 鈥渄eath trilogy鈥� of films 鈥� 2002鈥檚 鈥淕erry,鈥� 2003鈥檚 鈥淓lephant鈥� and 2005鈥檚 鈥淟ast Days鈥� 鈥� which 鈥渁re just slower, more methodical, more deliberate and follow characters through a scene.鈥� He wanted to approach a slasher with that same type of execution.
The director says he鈥檚 noticed a slow cinema movement developing in the horror genre.
"I don't know where it's coming from, but there definitely seems to be a bit of a tone shift,鈥� he says.
He notes that in 鈥渃reepypastas鈥� 鈥� a catch-all term for horror-related content that鈥檚 been copied and pasted around the internet 鈥� he鈥檚 been noticing more 鈥渓iminal spaces videos where there's nothing necessarily happening. There are no jumpscares. The environment itself is the horror that you're living in.鈥�
While not much happens in the videos he speaks of, a lot is happening in Nash's life. He鈥檚 described his last few days at Sundance as 鈥渁 whirlwind.鈥�
"I have no idea what impact this is going to have on me or my career," he says.聽
"I think it's great that it's happening now. If I was 25 and this happened, I would burn out so quickly."
Nash looks forward to connecting with other filmmakers over the next week, but he doesn't foresee himself partying too hard at the festival, which runs through Jan. 28.
"Sleep is great," he says. "Waking up early is amazing."
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 20, 2024.
Alex Nino Gheciu, The Canadian Press
