Horror and humor: NHFF Drama Tyrel has it all

Tyrel showed at The Music Hall on Saturday night. Directed by Sebastián Silva; produced by Jacob Wasserman, Max Born, and Sebastián Silva; starring Jason Mitchell, Christopher Abbott, Michael Cera, Caleb Landry Jones, and Ann Dowd, Tyrel follows Tyler (Mitchell) as he journeys up to the Catskills with his friend Johnny (Abbott) to celebrate Johnny’s friend Pete (Jones) and his birthday.

As soon as they arrive in the Catskills, it’s clear that (1) he’s the only black guy, and (2) it’s going to be a weekend of heavy drinking. Although Tyler is welcomed, he can’t help but feel uneasy in “Whitesville.” The combination of all the testosterone and alcohol starts to get out of hand, and Tyler’s precarious situation starts to feel like a nightmare.

Elements of both horror and comedy showed up in the film. Some scenes emitted a sense of weariness, and felt eerily similar to the movie adaption of Steven King’s book The Shining. Other scenes felt as if they belonged in the Grown Ups trilogy. This juxtaposition kept the audience seemingly engaged and on their feet. There was laughter at some scenes. In other scenes, there seemed to be a hushed silence as Tyler became increasingly uncomfortable with his situation.

By Christopher Edwards