SXSW 2021 Review: ‘Offseason’ Is Atmospheric Horror with Fantastic Worldbuilding

“Offseason” surprises as an unpredictable horror film directed by Mickey Keating where the folk horror influences are apparent. The feature, playing in the ‘Midnighters’ section at this year’s SXSW festival, picks up when Marie Aldrich (Jocelin Donahue) receives word that the grave of her mother, famous actress Ava Aldrich (Melora Walters), has been vandalized in Ava’s hometown of Lone Palm Beach. Marie returns there with George (Joe Swanberg), who have a complicated relationship. Once there, they’re entangled in something truly bizarre.

The film’s set-up is strong from the jump as the pair cross paths with a harbinger simply called ‘The Bridge Man’ (Richard Brake), who tells the couple he’s closing the bridge for the offseason. That premise of them being separated from the mainland if they’re not back in time adds to the stakes. Brake’s Bridge Man, too, has a small role but Keating makes him one of the most fascinating characters in “Offseason.” I’d love to go into the themes of this character and what makes him compelling, but I won’t spoil that. Just know Brake is magnetic whenever he’s on-screen.

The world building here is its biggest draw as it supplies an answer of what happens to sleepy summer towns during the offseason. Keating takes that to an extreme with some of its surrealism and straightforward horror. The mystery on this island and sense of “what’s going on?” is constant, especially as the mood on the island shifts overnight. Impressive, too, is there’s always coherence as the puzzle pieces come together as we learn about this world and are given answers.

It’s neat how the island itself feels like a character due to its rich history, much like The Overlook Hotel in “The Shining.” The island of New Smyrna Beach, Florida, is gorgeous and just provides so much life and the location itself sets the mood for the film. It’s gorgeous and foggy in the day; unnerving at night. Assisting with that mood are some of the film’s technical aspects, like Mac Fisken’s cinematography or Shafyer James’ score (the main theme is great). The strong writing and cast help out a lot here, too.

Jocelin Donahue is great as the film’s lead Marie, as she deals with her mom’s death. Flashback scenes Marie and her mother Ava as she struggles with dementia are integral to Marie’s development. The film is a great analysis of grief, as well as coming to terms with death. “Offseason” is also set up as a story about not being able to escape your trauma, and for Marie that’s not being able to escape the imprint of her mother’s death.

This lends to the sentiment of accepting your roots, your past, and your origins, which makes the exploration of the town all the more intriguing. Keating includes profound statements in his script that capture the meaning perfectly. “At some point you have to accept your nightmares,” says Ava. “Now they’re part of you, like family. Like an old friend.”

While the storyline itself feels thin compared to the vastness of this film’s world building and its themes, it has a brisk pace as the characters react to everything around them. This gives the film that naturalistic dialogue vibe of mumblegore films, and much of the team on this film have experience in that subgenre—including Jocelin Donahue who was in “The House of the Devil,” Joe Swanberg for “You’re Next,” actor Jeremy Gardner for “The Battery” as well as Writer/Director Mickey Keating for his film “Darling.”

This is a large reason why the storyline itself feels “lite,” as the synopsis of what happens here could be outlined in a page. It’s a lot of atmospheric exploring and learning the history of the town, but with what Keating does with the world building, it feels much deeper than that. In the story we merely go with the flow and follow Marie and George, reacting to situations. These include Marie running down empty, foggy streets like in “Silent Hill,” running into creepy townsfolk in the woods, and other haunting imagery I won’t spoil.

The first half of this is strong set-up, where much of the horror happens in the second half where the mystery truly gets topsy turvy. Wherever you think it’s going, you could have the right inkling; but “Offseason” does a great job of throwing crazy surprises at you. For that reason, it’s a great midnight film.