A Low-Budget Throwback That Mostly Works

Read Time:5 Minute, 33 Second

MOVIE REVIEW
Friends Forever
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Genre: Horror, Short
Year Released: 2023
Runtime: 20m
Director(s): Thomas Angeletti
Writer(s): Thomas Angeletti, Paige Hoover, Jared Richard Acker
Cast: Ashlee Lawhorn, Colleen O'Morrow, Paige Hoover, Mark Murtha, Timothy J. Cox, Julie Carney, Kevin Rife, Christy Carson
Where to Watch: available now, watch here: www.youtube.com

RAVING REVIEW: Dressed in '80s nostalgia and soaked in blood, FRIENDS FOREVER is a horror short that understands exactly what it wants to be. It’s not trying to redefine the slasher genre, and it doesn’t need to. Instead, it leans into its world created in the film—a cursed party in a farmhouse—with confidence and just enough craft to deliver a memorable 20-minute experience.

The film opens in 1957 with a quietly unsettling cold open: a Midwestern family dinner turns from routine to ritualistic slaughter without much warning. Timothy J. Cox plays the father with an eerie calm, while Julie Carney’s mother channels old-school silent-movie menace. It’s one of the most stylized and effective sequences in the short, setting the stage for something darker than your average throwback horror.

Jump ahead three decades, and we meet a group of college friends who find the same farmhouse and decide to throw a party. It’s now October 1987, and while the setup may sound predictable, there’s a charm to how the film plays with expectations. The script sprinkles in just enough oddity—dusty dolls, and a house that seems too preserved for comfort—to keep the viewer guessing whether this is a haunted house story or something worse.

Ashlee Lawhorn stands out as Cassandra, the friend with instincts sharp enough to know they probably shouldn’t be there. Colleen O'Morrow’s Erica adds an interesting layer of emotional conflict, and Mark Murtha and Paige Hoover round out the group with performances that match the tone. There’s a decent amount of nuance here, considering the runtime. These aren’t just cardboard characters set up for a kill count.

While some might wish for more exposition or a deeper mythology around the house, the lack of hand-holding feels intentional. There are clues, lingering trauma, and more, but the film trusts its audience to piece things together. It might have benefited from one or two extra scenes to strengthen the connection between the past and the present, but that’s more a reflection of how engaging the premise is than a failure of execution.

Stylistically, FRIENDS FOREVER thrives. The use of black-and-white cinematography for the 1957 sequence gives the opening a chilling stillness. The transition to color in 1987 is a smart move that not only separates timelines but also grounds the era. Costumes, lighting, and set design do a solid job of capturing a retro horror aesthetic without becoming parody. And the score is one of the film’s greatest assets. It builds mood more effectively than some features triple the length.

Special effects are practical and wisely understated. There’s a bit of blood, but it’s not excessive, and the horror comes more from mood than gore. When the violence does arrive, it’s quick and unsettling, leaving a lingering discomfort rather than cheap thrills. For an indie horror short, that restraint shows maturity. I have to give props to the costumes too; there’s something familiar yet unique that really sticks with you after everything settles in.

The sound mix struggles at times, especially during crowded scenes at the party. Some lines feel a little stilted, and while the actors give it their all, not every moment lands perfectly. But again, considering the budget and scope, the flaws are forgivable. They add to the gritty charm—like a lost VHS rental you stumbled upon in a stack of tapes. I think that would have added a perfect mix (although an additional cost) had the opening been shot on old stock film, and the “newer” scenes on a VHS tape; it could have been effective. Although I appreciate the fact that they didn’t try to fake it with digital effects (the fake film look never works),

Director Thomas Angeletti’s vision is clear. He and his co-writers know the territory they’re playing in, and they tap into it with respect rather than irony. There’s no wink-wink meta-horror here. Instead, it’s a short film that plays it straight, anchored by solid performances and a well-executed atmosphere.

FRIENDS FOREVER doesn’t reinvent the genre, but it honors it. For horror fans nostalgic for the days of VHS, midnight movies, and campfire tales, this is a short that delivers exactly what it promises. It has enough charm, stylistic vibes, and bloody payoff to make its 20 minutes well worth the time. If anything, it leaves you wanting just a little bit more—not because it’s incomplete, but because the world it builds feels like it could support a feature-length expansion.

It’s the kind of indie short that reminds you how much can be done with just a handful of actors, a creepy house, and a clear sense of tone. No gimmicks, no overblown effects—just a spooky little story that sticks with you. And that’s what horror should do.

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[photo courtesy of ALYSM FILMS]

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