Category: Horror/ Psychological Thriller

Even though it is very hard to compare it to any other movie, you might like this movie if you enjoyed:
Insididous (2010)

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Over a year ago I interviewed director and writer Lauand Omar about his upcoming movie Curse of Mesopotamia, which left me with pleasant anticipation, because according to Lauand it would have all the elements that recent horror movies have been lacking: an original storyline, non-clishé characters, and new gore effects.

On August 15 USA and Canada were finally able to stream Curse of Mesopotamia, and I was one of the first ones to watch it.
It evolves around a group of people who suffer from terrible nightmares that happen at an abandoned mansion. When their psychiatrist finds out that they dream about a castle in Kurdistan, she invites them to travel to this mysterious place to face their fears and gain clearity. At first the nightmares turn into pleasant dreams, however, the group soon realizes that they opened a terrifying door from the past that is slowly melting together with the present. No one is safe.

Curse of Mesopotamia already made history as the first movie from the Middle East that is entirely in English. That alone is worth a watch.

What stands out for me the most is the amazing soundtrack, every song is on point, and the scare sounds made me feel uneasy. Lauand Omar introduces us to a story that is inspired by an ancient legend, and while he does that, he plays with past and present, delusion and reality. On top of that he adds smart dialogues that involve current issues, such as homophobia, double standard and terrorism. I honestly wished the dialogues could have even gone deeper, that’s how much i loved it.

Some scenes seem a little too tame for me, I wanted the situation to escalate even more, I guess I am still trapped in that clishé that characters have to freak out and scream and run for their lives, but I don’t care, that’s what I like. He wanted to stay away from this predictability, which I can understand. Other scenes are extremely well crafted, powerful and artistic, leave a lot of room for interpretation, and make you want to go back and relive it all over again.

Even though a few of the acting performances fell a little flat for me or too theatrical at times I was overall impressed by the fresh and fun cast; I had a blast seeing Melissa Mars as a total bitch, Terrell Carter – The suave playboy who plays for both teams, and Ahmad Massad as the unreckonable and vulnerable follower of Allah, who probably faces the biggest twist which made me say ,”Wait whaaat?! No freaking wayyyyy!”. Ana Sinclair was very settle yet powerful, I love listening to her voice. Hania Amar and Mauricio Rousselon completed the group, and gave a wonderful and convincing performance as well. Keeping the group together was Stacy Thunes as Dr. Barbara; her character was almost too calm and understanding for my taste nonetheless I enjoyed her performance. And what can I say about Kaoutar Boudarraja besides: Wooow!

I actually gasped with the gore scenes, they were unexpected, shocking and twisted. It was the right amount of gore, and I loved it.

We have to look at Curse of Mesopotamia for what it actually is: an Indie Film Production that had a relatively low budget, and yet managed to entertain, shock and deliver a very new concept and vision of horror. Could it compete with big Hollywood Blockbusters? With a few tweaks and re-editing, absolutely!

Lauand is already working on his next big movie, but I am hoping that some important people will get the chance to watch The Curse and offer him a big budget to redo this movie for Hollywood. It could set new standards in terms of creativity and attention for detail.

Very Well done! I am glad I own it because I will watch it again.

My Rating: 7/10

Get your copy on Amazon and iTunes today!!! Support Indie Movies!!

Check out the terrifying trailer:

Get your copy on Amazon and iTunes today!!! Support Indie Movies!!

Published by Elias

Biracial Kid, born in the late 80s. I write short stories, lyrics, books, I love Food, and I watch as many TV shows and movies as I can. My dream is to share my happiness and joy with the world... and to open a luxury hotel. View all posts by Elias