Lo (2009)

I'm not a big fan of theatre. I don't like sitting far away from tiny people on stage, squinting to see their faces and trying to gleam some emotion out of what's going on. I can handle big extravagant theatre where they express emotion through crazy set pieces or song and dance, but little stage plays where people just walk around and talk? No thanks.

Movies that take this concept just a bit further — essentially filming a play — are very hit or miss for me. You've great such a great, flexible medium in film… why would you just want to film people walking around running their yap?

Lo is a film where people don't walk around talking. Worse, they sit on the floor talking, for the entire movie. Yikes. I was prepared to hate it on principle.

It's about a guy named Justin who summons a demon named Lo in a crazy attempt to get his girlfriend back after she was apparently kidnapped by some other demons. Lo had his legs crushed so he crawls around making disgusting demon noises, unable to pass through the ritualistic barrier protecting Justin, and the two face off in a battle of words for an hour and a half.

The whole movie takes place inside Justin's apartment. With the lights off and the candles from his circle providing the only illumination, Lo uses the darkness to project Justin's thoughts, forcing him to relive moments with his girlfriend as the demon tries to understand this thing called love.

What surprised me was how much I enjoyed this movie, despite the style. The banter between human and demon is entertaining, and while the ending is predictable it's the journey along the way that makes it worthwhile. I was definitely mislead thinking this is a horror film. It's a dark comedy all the way, with demons that are more pithy than terrifying. But demons they are, so I guess I don't feel totally gypped.