Screen Slayer: The Ironic Reality within Stuart Ortiz's Faux Documentary

Have you ever thought about America's fixation with serial killers? It’s an eerie fascination, isn't it? It’s given notoriety to the likes of Ted Bundy, Jeffrey Dahmer, and John Wayne Gacy. This same fascination fuels the whole “true-crime” genre, both in print and on the screen. Let's take, for instance, "Strange Harvest." A faux documentary about a fictitious serial killer, so real-looking that you just might fall for it, hook, line, and sinker.

You might wonder why someone would even come up with a trick like this. Isn't a traditional horror film enticing enough, chilling us to the marrow without pretending to be real? Well, probably yes. But Stuart Ortiz's "Strange Harvest" is as riveting as it is creepy. Its great power lies in its painstaking recreation of tabloid journalism, making a wholly fabricated tale unfold like a true, blood-stained report ripped from our daily papers. 

Ortiz, one-half of "The Vicious Brothers", seems to relish this sleight of hand. He certainly had practice; remember 2011's "Grave Encounters"? A gripping coaster ride that’s one of the better slants on the overdone found-footage subgenre. Ortiz puts these skills to work in "Strange Harvest," where every minute detail is tended to, elevating the faux-documentary into an art.

And he doesn't pull punches. The film sweeps you in, stating, "The following is considered one of the most unreported cases in Southern California history”. We're led to a horrifying triple murder scene - a family gruesomely bound and bled out. And cue the cryptic symbol painted high up on the ceiling, the detective's ominous words, "Oh my god, he's back,” and you're officially hooked. Note the creepy letters from "Mr. Shiny," and the suspense just keeps piling up. 

Before long, there are more victims and ominous signs of occult symbolisms at each crime scene. Here’s the kicker: the killer is caught on camera several times thanks to today's rampant technology. Despite his knack for avoiding physical evidence, surveillance cameras continue to capture his horrific acts.

While we journey into this concocted reality, Detectives Joe Kirby (Peter Zizzo) and Lexi Taylor (Terri Apple) are our constant companions. Our steady narrators that keep the horror real. Various experts and victims' friends and relatives also chime in, making the illusion almost seamless.

"Strange Harvest" rolls along like any regular true-crime story, complete with fake news reports, street interviews, and Zoom calls. By the end of it, you might forget you are in the realm of fiction. Yes, the film eventually zeroes in on the invincible "Mr. Shiny." Yet, the film leaves us hanging with many unsolved mysteries, and a bloody climax that elevates the suspense.

Ending on a cliffhanger, "Strange Harvest" taps into our gruesome fascinations while smudging the boundaries between reality and invented horror. So ladies and gents, buckle up. Let's dive into the realm of mock true-crime, surprisingly as captivating as it is horrifying.