Review: ‘Jethica,’ starring Callie Hernandez, Ashley Denise Robinson, Will Madden and Andy Faulkner

March 16, 2022

by Carla Hay

Callie Hernandez and Ashley Denise Robinson in “Jethica” (Photo by Pete Ohs)

“Jethica”

Directed by Pete Ohs

Culture Representation: Taking place in an unnamed city in New Mexico, the comedy/drama film “Jethica” features a predominantly white cast of characters (with one Latina and one African American) representing the working-class and middle-class.

Culture Clash: A woman has an unexpected reunion with a former classmate from high school, but this former classmate has a big problem: a stalker who follows her everywhere.

Culture Audience: “Jethica” will appeal primarily to people who are interested in offbeat dark comedies that are unpredictable.

Callie Hernandez and Will Madden in “Jethica” (Photo by Pete Ohs)

The dark comedy thriller “Jethica” blurs genres and cheekily plays with viewer expectations on what the movie is about and how it’s all going to end. Directed by Pete Ohs, “Jethica” has a relatively small number of cast members, and the movie clocks in at 70 minutes. It’s just the right amount of time to tell this story, in what could have easily been a short film. “Jethica” has a simple concept, but it’s depicted in a compellingly eerie way.

Five people have screenwriting credits for “Jethica”: director Ohs and four of the movie’s cast members: Callie Hernandez (who plays Elena), Ashley Denise Robinson (who plays Jessica), Will Madden (who plays Kevin) and Andy Faulkner (who plays Benny). By having so many cast members credited as screenwriters, “Jethica” gives the impression that much of this movie was improvised. And sure enough, in the production notes for “Jethica,” Ohs makes this statement: “Our creative process was an experiment. We went to New Mexico without a script and wrote the movie as we went.” “Jethica” had its world premiere at the 2022 South by Southwest (SXSW) Film Festival.

On the surface, “Jethica” (which takes place in an unnamed city in New Mexico) sounds like a typical “woman in peril” movie about someone being followed by a stalker. But there’s more to the story than the stalking. The beginning of the film shows a woman in her 20s named Elena having a sexual tryst in the back of a car with an unnamed man (played by Alan Palomo), whose face is never seen in the movie. Based on their conversation, she thinks of him as no more than a casual hookup whom she sees on a semi-regular basis.

During this tryst, he asks Elena why she hasn’t invited him to her home. She explains that she has a roommate and doesn’t want to deal with scheduling their hookups based on when the roommate will be home or not. Elena then tells him that about a year ago, she lived alone in an isolated trailer that she inherited from her grandmother.

Elena states matter-of-factly that the reason for her seclusion was “because I killed somebody.” Elena’s lover responds sarcastically, “I had no idea I was hooking up with a murderer.” Elena then begins to tell what happened when she lived alone in that trailer. The movie then switches to flashback mode for nearly all of the story.

The flashback begins with Elena getting gas for her car at a gas station, where she randomly sees Jessica, a former classmate from high school, who’s getting gas for her own car. Elena and Jessica haven’t seen each other since they were high-school students. Their reunion starts off a little awkward, because Jessica doesn’t seem that happy to see Elena. Jessica comes across as uncomfortable and a little standoffish when talking to Elena.

Jessica says that she used to live in California, but she left because she had a stalker. She then moved to Santa Fe, but the stalker found her there too. Jessica says she’s on a road trip but doesn’t mention where she’s going. Elena invites Jessica to her place to hang out and have some coffee. At first Jessica says no, but then she changes her mind.

While Jessica follows Elena back to Elena’s trailer, she notices that Elena has stopped on the road to say hello to a man in his late 20s or early 30s. He seems to be walking with a slightly off-kilter gait and has a vacant stare. It’s unclear if the man is homeless or not. When they get to the trailer, Elena explains that the man’s name is Benny, and he’s a platonic friend of hers.

Jessica begins to open up to Elena about her stalker ordeal. She says that her stalker is a man named Kevin Morris, whom she barely knows, but somehow, he became obsessed with her. Jessica also mentions that the police won’t help with her stalking problem because Kevin didn’t break any laws by showing up in public in the same places where Jessica was.

However, Jessica shows Elena some of the creepy videos and letters that Kevin sent her. Although he never threatened her with bodily harm, his rantings became increasingly hostile because he became upset with Jessica for not responding to his communication. Kevin talks with a lisp, which is why the title of the movie is “Jethica.”

Elena generously tells Jessica that she can stay in Elena’s home as long as Jessica needs to stay. For now, Jessica just accepts the offer to stay the night. But it isn’t long before a man shows up outside the trailer. He restlessly paces back and forth and yells out Jessica’s name repeatedly.

A terrified Jessica peers out the window and is certain that the man, who looks a lot like Kevin, can’t possibly be Kevin. How can she be so sure? Who is this man? And how did he find Jessica in this very remote area? Those questions are eventually answered in the movie.

“Jethica” is a very atmospheric film that makes great use of the scenic vistas in New Mexico’s desert landscapes and Puebloan ruins. (The movie was filmed in Estancia, New Mexico.) “Jethica” director/co-writer Ohs is also the movie’s producer, cinematographer and film editor. Some of the sunset and nighttime shots in the movie are as breathtaking as they can be foreboding, because most of the movie takes place in a remote area where something ominous always seems to be on the brink of happening.

It’s not quite a horror film, but “Jethica” has some aspects of supernatural horror. Still, viewers should not expect major terror or chase scenes that are typical of supernatural horror movies. The movie has plenty of suspense and touches of sardonic comedy that make it worthwhile to viewers who can appreciate eccentric, low-budget films.

“Jethica” isn’t a movie where people give award-worthy performances, although all of the cast members are perfectly fine in their roles. That’s because all of the movie’s characters in this New Mexico desert area are guarded about something. The secrets that come out are what people will remember most about “Jethica.”

UPDATE: Cindeigm will release “Jethica” in select U.S. cinemas on January 13, 2023. Fandor will premiere the movie on February 14, 2023.

Copyright 2017-2024 Culture Mix
CULTURE MIX