Go Down Death: Review

26th January 2020

Go Down Death is the arthouse feature debut of up and coming writer/director Aaron Schimberg. Based on the folklore of Jonathan Mallory Sinus (a presumably fictitious writer) Schimberg’s film depicts a town which seems to be somewhere between the living and what’s beyond.

His tale takes the audience on a ride as the story flits between each set of characters in a somewhat unconventional way as the characters are all established. However, before the story really digs in Schimberg keeps his audience on their toes as his filming style is anything but ordinary.

The audience meet a little boy and a doctor who talks about human nature in a way that an adult would never do with a small child, but with the child responding thoughtfully and in an informed way. There’s also a prostitute who converses with a client while they both sit comfortably naked on a bed.

Then there’s a man who has had both of his legs amputated from the knees down who talks about what it means for the rest of his body to lose his legs – but not in the way the audience might think. In fact, there are many things the audience may not be expecting and even when the audience finally thinks they have it all worked out, the final act throws everything out the window.

Schimberg’s final trick is to force the audience to yet again think about the strange and unexpected direction that the film has taken and what it all means. However, like the rest of the unconventional, chaotic and experimental nature of the film, don’t go expecting to be given any answers as to what’s going on.

For those who enjoy a film where every little detail is not laid out in front of you and a lot is open to interpretation then Go Down Death may be the film for you. Those who enjoy something a little more mainstream will obviously avoid this film, but for those who love to explore, dissect and discuss the nuances of film making with others then Go Down Death might be just the thing that you can get your teeth into.

It may just be a little infuriating that after some time even the most avid film fans may not find that there are any answers at all.

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