Is it time to twist your brain into knots? Jordan A. Roman’s short is just what your psychologist and physical therapist ordered. Strap in.
In the woods sits a torn-up stick shelter, and a man running on all fours approaches it, sniffs the wreckage, and then bolts for the city. As the man-creature looks through a window at a dress, we listen in on a conversation between John and Hannah as they discuss plans for the night. Hannah wants to meet up with John, but John is busy. We then see John preparing for a drag show he is about to perform in. We soon discover that the creature from the beginning of the film looks exactly like John.
Hannah (Paige Henderson) raises a baseball bat in the dark in My Name Is John.
“At this point, the John-looking creature breaks into her home, and she grabs a baseball bat and investigates.”
Later that night, we are at Hannah’s house out in the middle of nowhere. As Hannah prepares to go out for the night with the girls to a drag show, John calls and says he has time and wants to see if she can hang out. At this point, the John-looking creature breaks into her home, and she grabs a baseball bat and investigates.
Director Jordan A. Roman and writer Frankie Campisano describe My Name Is John as a psychological horror about gender identity as it relates to the creature and its abilities. We know what the film is trying to say, but I like that it isn’t done in a heavy-handed way.
Director Roman creates a short film that feels like a true horror tale. He brings a horror atmosphere to My Name Is John. This is due to the lighting and use of darkness, the ominous soundtrack, and, of course, the horror-like physical performances of the creature played by both actors. Roman brilliantly weaves together a terrifying tale of a shape-shifting creature, perfect for your late-night horror film festival track.
"…just what your psychologist and physical therapist ordered."
