Digging Up the Marrow won’t give you all the answers, but it doesn’t need to. What it does do is remind you that horror isn’t just about fear.
Synopsis
A documentary team exploring genre based monster art takes an odd turn when the filmmakers are contacted by a man who claims he can prove that monsters are indeed real.
My Thoughts
Digging Up the Marrow is I think what happens when a horror director gets a mysterious letter from a stranger claiming monsters are real, and instead of throwing it away like a normal person, he grabs a camera, calls his mates, and dives headfirst into madness. And that director is Adam Green.
The film is a mockumentary. But not just any mockumentary. It’s part horror film, part meta-commentary, and part therapy session for horror fans who still cling to the belief that something lurks in the shadows beyond jump scares.
The film begins when Green, playing himself in a role that’s equal parts sincere and self-deprecating, receives a case file from a man named William Dekker (played with unhinged gravitas by Ray Wise, who frankly could make reading the phone book feel sinister).
Dekker claims that monsters exist, not metaphorically, not allegorically, but actually. And he knows where they live apparently, which is in a hidden underground place he calls The Marrow, a kind of supernatural halfway house for misfits, monsters, and, presumably, ex-Carnival employees.
Naturally, Green does what any filmmaker with a modest budget and too much creative freedom would do, he decides to make a documentary. And what unfolds is a slow descent into obsessive filmmaking, shaky found-footage horror, and a bit of a professional identity crisis.
It has a really strong raw, DIY aesthetic feel which I enjoyed, and the special effects are practical (praise be), the lighting minimal, and the suspense slow-cooked.
It’s a film that promises monsters, and shows us glimpses, but then doubles back with skepticism. Are the monsters real? Is Dekker just a charismatic lunatic with a flashlight and a flair for storytelling? It’s all quite ambigious, and while this narrative ping-ponging might frustrate some it’s also what gives the film its strange power.
It’s basically a horror movie caught in an existential crisis, half wanting to prove monsters exist, half afraid that we’ve all grown too cynical to believe anymore.
I did feel like it occasionally felt a bit too much like a side project that got out of hand, and the pacing is very uneven at times, and the tone wobbles between mock-doc satire and earnest monster hunting.
At times, you get the sense even Green isn’t sure whether he’s making a horror film or a thesis on the death of childhood wonder.
Digging Up the Marrow isn’t a clean, slick, polished product. It’s a bit messy. A bit strange. But it’s also fairly clever. And when it finally does let loose with its creature reveals which are done entirely through practical effects, it’s a glorious reminder of what horror can be when filmmakers get their hands dirty. Literally.
It won’t give you all the answers, but it doesn’t need to. What it does do is remind you that horror isn’t just about fear, and that it’s also about belief. Belief in the monsters under your bed, the shapes in the shadows, and the idea that somewhere, just out of reach, the extraordinary still might exist.
It is one of the more interesting, weirdly moving experiments in horror I have watched though.
Digging Up the Marrow Trailer
Digging Up the Marrow on IMDB
Good Points
Original Concept – The premise is pretty original, and a self-aware twist on the found-footage and creature-feature genres.
Ray Wise’s Performance – Wise brings gravitas, charm, and just the right amount of creepy uncle energy to his role as Dekker, and he elevates every scene he’s in.
Self-Awareness – The film is done in a fun, and clever way. It’s a horror movie about making a horror movie, but without being annoyingly smug about it.
Strong Atmosphere – The concept of The Marrow as a hidden world for society’s outcasts is imaginative and creepy, yet oddly sympathetic.
Bad Points
Uneven Tone – The film can’t quite decide what it wants to be, and the tonal shifts undermine the film a bit.
Pacing Issues – The middle section drags, and some parts feel a bit padded.
The Scares – Yes, ‘scary’is subjective, and while the film has a creepy vibes, don’t expect to be scared much in the traditional sense.
Is Digging Up the Marrow Worth Watching?
Yep.
Quite enjoyed this. It’s not the kind of horror film you will watch for any big scares or a neatly wrapped plot, though. It’s some’s across more of a love letter to monster lore and genre filmmaking, made by a horror nerd for horror nerds.
But I would recommend it.
Where To Stream
Director and Cast
Director – Adam Green
Main Cast – Adam Green, Ray Wise, Will Barratt, Rileah Vanderbilt, Josh Ethier, Kane Hodder, and Mick Garris.
Found Footage Horror Movies 
Leave a reply to gogulrikiya Cancel reply