Once Upon a Time in the District Featured, Reviews Film Threat
The more themes a horror movie has, the harder it is to manage them all. But if done right, the benefits will be huge. In his indie horror film, Once Upon a Time in the District, writer/director Harold Jackson III’s large cast and meandering plot pay off. Our story begins innocently enough with three friends Kerri (Judi Johnson), Brandy (Ashley Rios), and Mika (Melan Perez), heading out to a birthday party at a nightclub while helping Mika take her mind off her problematic past. The party is progressing quite well when Kerri meets a nice guy (with a past), Vince (Mark McKinnon). Mika hooks up with a handsome gentleman as the party moves to Brandy’s apartment. While Kerri and Brandy are chatting, Mika bursts into the kitchen holding a bloody knife, her one-night-stand dead. She is in such a state of shock that she doesn’t know if she was defending herself. Against their better judgment, the three decide to bury the body and hope the trouble blows over.
Needing help with the body, Brandy turns to her cousin, Teddy (Antonio Harrison Jr.), who is less than thrilled to have a dead body in the trunk. Teddy is even more unhappy when he now becomes an accomplice. Now that the body has been buried, the story cannot end here and a series of unfortunate events begin to take place. First, there’s homicide detective Jack McMann (Danny Gavigan), who finds himself involved in the investigation of the missing man killed by Mika. But Jack has his own problems regarding a possibly innocent death row inmate. This is where Once Upon a Time in the District enters unexpected territory. Teddy owes fifty thousand dollars to brutal thug Demond (Karon Riley). Because he had to pay Demond back by the end of the week, Teddy blackmailed Kerri, Brandy, and Mika to get the money. The final piece of the puzzle involves the upcoming mayoral election, taking the story far beyond a simple murder and cover-up.
It’s been a while since I’ve been this impressed by an independent horror film. We always say it at Film Threat: a good story will make up for any film’s budget and production shortcomings. The story and dialogue are the real stars. Now let’s talk about the plot. That’s right, the trio could have told the truth to the police, and Kerri and Brandy would have been exonerated, and the movie ended. But Once Upon a Time in the Neighborhood is a horror movie and life is bound to get complicated, especially with Mika’s past. Jackson III tells a compelling story that ranges from simple murder to blackmail to political corruption. The filmmaker skillfully fills in each plot hole and justifies them logically. He finds plausible motivations for why his characters make seemingly morally bad choices. The cast is incredible from top to bottom. Johnson anchors the entire story as the only pure-hearted and compassionate character Kerri. As for the rest of the cast, Jackson gets the emotion and tone right from scene to scene.
Once Upon a Time in the District also boasts great dialogue. Two scenes stand out the most. The first is the tense interaction with Mika’s hazy account of the killing. Kerri is talking her “off the ledge” while trying to make sense of the situation. The other shows off Jackson’s use of humor involving a hilarious yet torturous conversation between Teddy and Demond. Teddy tries to negotiate more time to pay Demond back, and Demond insists that Teddy goes on a “field trip” for some “motivation.” Once Upon a Time in the District is a solid thriller from start to finish. Jackson III has given us a modern urban noir that downright feels fresh and original.