A 666-Character Review of ‘Something in the Dirt’

Release Date
January 21, 2022
DIRECTORS
Justin Benson & Aaron Moorhead
WRITER
Justin Benson
STARRING
Justin Benson & Aaron Moorhead
Our Score
6

Genre filmmaking duo Benson & Moorhead are back with a minimal, yet overstuffed DIY effort. The two wrote, directed, and star as new neighbors living in a small LA apartment complex. Upon witnessing an unexplainable paranormal event, they set forward on a never ending quest to explain what happened. Listen, I love these guys. I’ll see anything they do at this point…however…this is rough. The title should have been, “COVID Boredom by Two Creative Workaholics”. It felt like they were throwing anything at the wall to see what stuck. It was like Charlie Day’s red string board on It’s Always Sunny. Enjoyable enough due to the energetic charm both auteurs have in front of the camera, but a bloated film that feels more about characters than the multiple conspiracy roads it halfway travels down.

A recommendation to only those who are established fans of the duo beforehand.

Something in the Dirt screened as part of the Sundance Film Festival 2022.

Reader Rating0 Votes
0
POS
Benson/Moorehead’s on-camera charm
Fun, comedic moments
Numerous callbacks to prior films
NEG
Runtime was overly long
Felt half-realised, with too much going on
6

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