DIRECTED BY HARLEY DI NARDO
WRITTEN BY HARLEY DI NARDO & STACY HULLAH
PRODUCED BY ANDERSON BOYD, MEGHAN WEINSTEIN
PRODUCTION DESIGNER: MADELINE O’BRIEN
EDITOR: ANDERSON BOYD

Ageing rock musician David Tangiers (Harley Di Nardo) currently works as a hair stylist in his own salon with his wife Cecily Tangiers (Samantha Smart), but that doesn’t mean he has given up on his dream of becoming a rock star. At his band’s height ‘Katatonic Spin’ was on the rise within the rock scene, which made it all the more difficult for David to just give up and move on as just another has been. Looking for one more shot with the follow-up album he never got to make, a mysterious young musician Javy Bates (Adam Reeser) enters into his life.  Initially, it is just a job at the salon, but even though he may not be a natural stylist his music demo has a fresh modern rock sound which is the perfect sound for David’s comeback. It seemed like the perfect opportunity for them to work together, but as Javy enters further into the lives of David and Cecily they soon realise he has an agenda of his own.

Dead envy is a new thriller from writer-director Harley Di Nardo who also plays the lead as the ageing rocker David Tangiers. As a musician and hair stylist in real life, the film does have a semi-autobiographical feel to incorporate his natural talents but also suggests that Harley may not be ready to give up on his own musical career.

From the initial setup of the film Dead Envy looked as though it is going to be a fairly predictable thriller. Once we are introduced to the shy and slightly awkwardly Javy, you get the impression that something is not quite right. As the film evolves however, Harley takes an unexpected visual approach which takes you off guard and adds a few twists which keep you guessing as to where the film is going to go.

The strength of the film, however, is the performances from the main cast, and even though Harley has the additional responsibilities with his directing, he remains central to the film. Delivering an emotionally torn performance as David who seems constantly divided as to what is really important to him. At times he seems committed to his wife Cecily who he says himself saved his life, and yet there is also a constant sense of resentment towards her where at times he comes across as narcissistic and cold. We later find out his discontent goes back to when a tour was cancelled at the height of the band’s career, due to Cecily struggling with what David described as “Personal problems”. Even though those personal problems were due to Cecily having a miscarriage.

The performance who really stood out for me was Adam Reeser as Javy Bates. Bates being quite an apt surname as he does hold some characteristics which are not too dissimilar to Norman Bates from Psycho (1960). Javy has a shy awkward persona which makes it understandable why they would sympathise with his character, yet at the same time, there is something not quite right. When it comes to people skills there is a sense of detachment and a naive ignorance regarding boundaries which makes him come across slightly unnerving. This really comes across with some of his more forthcoming comments towards Cecily, which she initially shrugs off. Adam does a great job with his unsettling portrayal of Javy and it would have been nice if the character and his history was explored further. The film gives us a glimpse into the alter ego for Javy as a performer in some of the films darker scenes, which creates one of the films most memorable moments.

Another character I would like to have seen used more is Dawn played by Carla Wynn. A psychic who visions create some of the films more surreal moments, which despite being short really grab your attention. With the way the film is set up, it feels as though there was meant to be more of a subplot involving Dawn, but for whatever reason, she doesn’t have the impact in the film that you would expect.

It is not surprising with Harley’s background that music plays an important role in the film, both as part of the main story and with the soundtrack to the film.  The rock soundtrack worked perfectly with the overall theme of the film, with an upbeat compilation which would track listing to listen to on its own. The only time I didn’t think the music worked was in a scene in which David serenades Cecily by way of an apology. Whilst we see David singing a different song is played over the top, which for me doesn’t connect with the scene. I like what they were trying to achieve with the idea, but I would have preferred if we could have heard David singing the song.

Dead Envy is a solid thriller from Harley Di Nardo, driven by the strong performances and a great soundtrack. The film surprisingly fits a lot into the running time of 1 hrs 12 mins, however, it still leaves you feeling as it should be have been longer, as there is more to the film which could have been explored.

‘DEAD ENVY’ is currently in cinemas and will be released on DVD, Cable and Digital HD, including iTunes, Amazon Instant, Google Play and Vudu, on September 3rd, 2018.

Philip Rogers

Published in various websites, Philip is a reviewer who is best known for his interviews and media coverage of independent projects including; films, books, theatre and live events. Always on the lookout for something different to cover!