Frightfest 2024: ‘Scared Shitless’ Review

Stars: Steven Ogg, Daniel Doheny, Chelsea Clark, Marty Adams | Written by Brandon Cohen | Directed by Vivenio Caldinelli

Directed by Vivenio Caldinelli, Canadian horror-comedy creature feature Scared Shitless is essentially a genetically engineered offshoot of 2006’s Slither, with a lot more toilet humour. It also provides character actor Steven Ogg (The Walking Dead) with a well-deserved lead role.

Ogg plays Don, an old-school plumber, whose 20-something son Sonny (Daniel Doheny) has become a couch-bound germophobe, following the death of his mother. In a last-ditch attempt to snap Sonny out of his depression, Don persuades him to tag along on his latest job, unblocking the toilets in an apartment complex. Admittedly, that’s not a great prospect for a germophobe, but Don is nothing if not optimistic.

However, neither Don nor Sonny are prepared for what awaits them at the apartment complex, as a genetically engineered creature has escaped into the plumbling system of the building and is eating its way through the residents. Can Sonny overcome his germophobia and help his father plunge the creature into oblivion, or are they both shit out of luck?

Revealed relatively early on, the creature in question is designed by Canadian creature guru Steve Kosanski, who effectively adds size, teeth and creepy-looking eyes to the red leech-like creatures in 2006’s Slither. The result is very effective, a creature that is suitably scary, but also simplistic enough to move around convincingly, without driving up the effects budget too much.

To that end, the kills are both inventive and satisfying, even if there aren’t quite as many of them as you might hope. Highlights include a camgirl getting killed while live-streaming her shower (it’s difficult to imagine a more 2024-appropriate death scene) and a laugh-out-loud prosthetic shot, followed by a moment that’s sure to have male audience members wincing in unison.

It’s always satisfying when a much-loved character actor is handed a lead role and knocks it out of the park, and that’s pretty much what happens here with Ogg, who is clearly enjoying himself as Don, nailing both the paternal concern for his son and the commendable work ethic he brings to his profession. Doheny is equally good as Sonny, generating touching father-son chemistry with Ogg, and there’s strong support from Chelsea Clark as Patricia, the apartment building’s feisty concierge and a former classmate of Sonny’s.

The dialogue is entertaining throughout, and the humour is consistently amusing – scriptwriter Brandon Cohen even pulls off the impressive feat of getting two separate laughs out of a single fart gag. Fortunately, however, the film resists the urge to indulge in a veritable deluge of toilet humour and it’s not nearly as visually repulsive as you might be expecting either. Indeed, it’s almost as if the filmmakers themselves were germophobic, as there’s no trace of the titular brown stuff whatsoever. Also, given the amount of times that characters say the phrase “Shit happens”, you have to wonder whether that was the film’s originally intended title.

Speaking of germophobia, the main problem with the film is essentially a script issue that could have been fixed with another draft. Specifically, there’s no real payoff to Sonny’s germophobia, either emotionally, dramatically or comedically. As a result, it feels at best like a wasted opportunity and at worst like a lazy bit of screenwriting, included only because character arcs usually involve overcoming obstacles, but without any follow-through.

In short, this isn’t entirely without flaws, but it has a palpable sense of fun and delivers nicely on its schlocky premise. It’ll also be interesting to see what director Vivenio Caldinelli does next.

*** 3/5

Scared Shitless screened as part of this year’s London Frightfest.