The Long Dark Trail (2023)

The fever dream is real!

Filmed on location deep in the woods of Northwestern Pennsylvania. The Long Dark Trail takes its graphic novel inspirations to heart and brings audiences face to face with a sadistic cult as themes of fate vs. free will are challenged routinely for the two brothers at the center of this journey into absolute blackness.

 

"takes its graphic novel inspirations to heart and brings audiences face to face with a sadistic cult"


The Long Dark Trail is a film that, at once, is full of primal energies and poetic metaphor as Writer/Directors Kevin Ignatius and Nick Psinakis take two brothers and pit them against their abusive father and then thrust them out the door and onto a journey through severe and dense wood to find their mother, who is a member of a dark and twisted cult.

That’s right, The Long Dark Trail is a brand new folk horror tale which will not leave your senses anytime soon and that’s to the credit of everyone involved in its mythmaking.  From the cold beginning as the brothers wake up and violently leave their father zip tied and stabbed in bed to the violent shots of the cult’s dangerous activity, there is little hope breaking through this nightmarish fever dream.

There is no sunshine in this grim reality and, if logical narratives are your preferred cup of tea when it comes to independent horror, then this one is going to mightily piss you off.  The story is beyond dark, the atmospheric music is wonderfully moody, and the images are intense and range from a nightmarish quality to those dispatched from Hell itself, echoing the journey these two impoverished brothers take.The Long Dark Trail (2023)

An official selection for numerous prestige film festivals around the globe, including Weekend of Fear and The Festival De Cannes Blood Windoal Selection, The Long Dark Trail never lets up, putting its Stand By Me charms against its unnerving Midsommar revelations, creating a unique experience that sees them running from their abusive father and straight into the arms of a treacherous cult, whose place in these haunted woods is as dark and as tangled as their roots.

Featuring quality performances from Brady O'Donnell, Carter O'Donnell, Trina Campbell, Michael Thyer, Alex Hughes, Tina Andersen, and co-writer/director Psinakis, The Long Dark Trail premieres on Digital, DVD, and Blu-ray February 21 from Cleopatra Entertainment.

4/5 stars

Film Details

The Long Dark Trail (2023)

MPAA Rating: Unrated.
Runtime:
78 mins
Director
: Kevin Ignatius; Nick Psinakis
Writer:
Kevin Ignatius; Nick Psinakis
Cast:
Trina Campbell; Brady O'Donnell; Carter O'Donnell
Genre
: Horror
Tagline:
They escaped from a nightmare, just to enter into hell.
Memorable Movie Quote:
Distributor:
Cleopatra Entertainment
Official Site:
Release Date:
February 21, 2023
DVD/Blu-ray Release Date:
February 21, 2023
Synopsis: An unnerving new folk horror tale from writer-directors Kevin Ignatius and Nick Psinakis. After two impoverished teenage brothers manage to escape their abusive father, they embark on a treacherous and haunted journey in the hope of finding their estranged mother who has joined a sadistic cult, deep in the woods of Northwestern Pennsylvania.

Art

The Long Dark Trail (2023)