DEAD MAIL
Directed by Joe DeBoer, Kyle McConaghy | 106 min | USA | 2024 | 14+ (violence)
Starring: Sterling Macer Jr, John Fleck, Thomas Boykin
A desperate cry for help, in the form of a bloodied note, finds its way to a 1980s post office, connecting a dead letter investigator to a kidnapped keyboard technician in this ingenious, nail-biting thriller that looks and feels like a long-lost Coen Brothers film from 1987.
With brilliant performances and an authentically retro aesthetic that can be best described as "early-80s VHS tape," this grainy, grimy chiller will get its hooks into you and won't let go. With its relentlessly ominous vibe, this sweaty-palmed fever dream is a surprising, slow-burn delight. Like last year's knockout Late Night with the Devil, Dead Mail is one of the year's greatest discoveries.
FESTIVALS: SXSW 2024, 2024 Toronto International Film Festival
Preceded by the short film:
HADO
Directed by: Ruby Rock | 12 min | Spain | 2024
Javi, an unfaithful, powerful man, drives down a poorly lit infrequently traveled road by night. He's returning home from a supposed work trip. In the blink of an eye, one mistake will change Javi's life forever.