Threshold didn’t necessarily grab me from a narrative standpoint, but from a technical perspective, you have to marvel at what Young and Robinson pulled off. Threshold is showing on Arrow.
Do you have that one sibling who always seems to be spiralling? You have to be responsible for them and ensure they don’t hurt themselves or others. Sometimes, they’ll ask you for the most time-consuming, extensive things in return for their continual appreciation of you. If you throw in the caveat that they may be cursed, you have Threshold.
Technically speaking, Threshold is very impressive because there are so many constraints on it – it was shot on a microscopic budget of less than $15,000, and it used a crew of just three people, all shooting on iPhones! It was also entirely improvised, adding yet another level of difficulty.
Just working with one of these is difficult enough on its own, so the fact that Patrick Robert Young and Powell Robinson were able to actually make a watchable film with a story is commendable in itself, which feels strange to say. Still, once you know the context, it makes more sense. I’m particularly looking forward to their feature-length documentary on making Threshold, Crossing the Threshold, which is a brilliant move by the directors – it’s rare to see the process of independent films, especially with the level of transparency the documentary promises.
The cinematography has a lot to offer, with kinetic dynamism peppered throughout the runtime, alongside eerily slow, paralysing focuses that emphasise Virginia’s sinister, paranoid mental state. It’s actually hard to believe the film was shot on an iPhone, which is far more a testament to the directors than to Apple – it’s one thing to film on an iPhone, but knowing how to make that footage look fantastic and implement it properly is where the real skill comes in.
Of course, it’s not entirely pulled off – while the conversations between brother/sister duo Virginia (Madison West) and Leo (Joey Millin) feel authentic and consistently develop their characters – rare for improvised dialogue – the improvisation does reveal itself at times. However, their relationship feels rich in its complexity, and the pair really do feel like a troubled brother and sister. The characterisation of the pair has clearly been carefully constructed, with thought given to their strengths and weaknesses – Leo’s nature as the protective big brother is injured by his inability to protect himself, his own life slightly haywire.
There’s also the meandering nature of their road trip – it feels as though Threshold doesn’t really get going until the 50-minute mark. Of course, the directors have emphasised the brother-sister relationship as the key to the story, not the potential curse itself. Still, the fundamental nature of the curse and the backstory of the cult’s obtaining of Virginia seemed like a very peculiar mystery that could’ve been gradually picked at, rather than suddenly bookended at the very end.
Ultimately, Threshold didn’t necessarily grab me from a narrative standpoint – but from a technical perspective, you have to marvel at what Young and Robinson pulled off. I’m looking forward to seeing what the pair do next.
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