Director-writer-star Daniel Christopher McCurry delivers an urban horror acid trip in natural light in his micro budget feature I Heard You Buy Souls. Fallon (played by McCurry) is a man who feels down on his luck, striving for success and never quite achieving it. Fallon has a normal life with a career, a wife, friends, and a solid income, but he’s been seduced by social media into believing he is nothing without wealth, fame, and fans. He’s heard (see film title) that souls are being traded down in the old ruins (which is hell), finds his way there through a portal and offers to make the deal. This the city version of going down to the crossroads. After a demon gives Fallon her sales pitch, which includes superficial philosophical musing on the nature of evil, Fallon signs the contract and gives her his crocs as a symbolic signal that he no longer wishes to live an un-glamorous life.
The film is nearly incomprehensible in terms of having a script with a linear narrative, but a couple of things do bubble to the surface. The rest of this film analysis is my interpretation of a frenetic series of images, sounds, spoken words, and brief vignettes. Your mileage may vary.
“…Fallon finds a portal to hell and offers his soul for fame and riches…”
After he makes the deal, Fallon’s friends and family begin having prophetic dreams and dark visions, and soon the first installment of his payment for his soul appears in the form of a bag of cash. Fallon embarks on his life of status and acclaim with his new-found wealth. Soon enough he finds the glamour to be as empty as his former life, and searches for a way to reclaim his soul. He joins fellow seekers in visiting spiritual realms to find a way back to his soul. In the end, the film seems to be a morality play about satisfaction in life not coming from external sources. We even get a nod to the Tom Hanks film Castaway and his volleyball companion, Wilson.
The film is dark, both figuratively and literally. It was shot in ambient light mostly at night, using lower end camera technology. While the sound (which is a critical element) is impressive for a low budget film, the production value of everything else is rough. The performances are stiff with amateurish dialogue delivery, more suited for a school play. The camera work is erratic, and the overall vibe feels more like a back yard rap video than a feature film. These elements all work together to amp up a chaotic sense of unease, which serves the apparent intent. As with the transactions of souls, there’s a bait-and-switch here: a film that looks at first to be a no-budget deliberate freak-out with dazzling light shows winds up being a thoughtful art film on the nature of happiness. Blame the crocs. Those things truly are the epitome of evil.
"…a thoughtful art film on the nature of happiness"
