The independent Horror industry has truly hit a hot streak over the last decade or so. Filling a gap for real fans who seek something more than the major studio remake or lackluster attempts to offer something new, one of the many creating within the independent world of Horror are Chuck and Karolina Morrongiello. A husband-and-wife filmmaking duo, Chuck and Karolina Morrongiello first grabbed the attention of Horror fans with their 2018 Found Footage styled film Amityville: Mt. Misery Rd. Handling much of the creation entirely themselves, in 2023 they returned with their latest original feature The American Ripper.
Earning accolades at independent film festivals including Best Feature at the Fantasm Shockreel Film Festival Orlando and Best Actress (Karolina Morrongiello) at the Tampa Bay Screams, like Amityville: Mt. Misery Rd, The American Ripper was picked up for wide distribution by ITN Distribution. With that, the new film arrived for streaming on platforms such as Vudu and Amazon Prime as of October 26, 2023, at this point you can also check it out on other services such as Tubi. All this in mind, the true question remains – what is The American Ripper all about?
Well, in short it follows a married couple – Bobby and Lola Benelli (portrayed by Chuck and Karolina Morrongiello) – who purchase the home of their dreams in a quiet lakefront community. Seeming almost too good to be true, it is, because soon Bobby’s personality begins to change to irritable, violent, and disconnected. Is he possessed? Does the land in which their new house sits on have a dark history? Most importantly, is anyone safe as Bobby’s personality metaphorizes into something unrecognizable?
A compelling enough concept, the film lasts for nearly two hours, moving along at a decent pace, but truthfully dragging at times as well. That in mind, it should be noted that the filming and production of Chuck and Karolina Morrongiello is actually quite good. The camera angles are artful, the editing is well done, and the stylistic approach (showing time lapses, etc.) is compelling. Beyond this, there are points throughout the film where the acting leaves a lot left to be desired. Unfortunately, as mentioned, the source material is actually not terrible… but one has to wonder how it would have all turned out with a bigger budget in-hand.
Nonetheless, The American Ripper is not without merits; because as mentioned, this project was solely put together by two people. Created during the Covid lockdown era, they obviously had challenges to overcome, so this needs to be taken into consideration. With all this said, it is difficult to deny that Chuck and Karoline Morrongiello are passionate about what they are doing; so, what is lacking in some areas, is made up for in others.
What does this all mean? It means that while The American Ripper is not the best independent Horror film out there, it is also certainly not the worst. If anything, it is a testament to a fortitude to keep creating, even when up against enormous obstacles. In the end, Chuck Morrongiello does shine in certain moments as the deranged Bobby Benelli, and so does Karoline Morrongiello as the dedicated, yet clearly distressed Lola Benelli. Commending the effort put into The American Ripper, it shows that this husband-and-wife team certainly have something going… they just need to hit a stride. That is why Cryptic Rock gives The American Ripper 2.5 out of 5 stars.
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