-Written by Kyle Bain.
After his girlfriend, Anja (Greer Grammer), suffers a severe head injury, lobsterman Jamie Eugley (Zak Steiner) must learn how to juggle his commitment to her and to his career. As the landscape of lobstering begins to change in his small town, he must find a way to rise above his challenges and get back on track. The Ghost Trap is a dramatic venture into achieving balance in an ever changing world.
Set against a stunning northeastern backdrop, The Ghost Trap tells a harrowing tale of love, survival, and heartbreak–led by Jamie. Writer-Director James Khanlarian creates a beautiful juxtaposition in tone that transcends the entirety of the film. From the very first shot, until the film’s conclusion–Khanlarian does a spectacular job of ensuring that his viewers are getting the best of both vibrant tones and harrowing ones. This allows the film to accurately mirror the real world and a series of scenarios in which we’ve experienced before. Viewers will likely be wrapped up in this experience, in the entirety of The Ghost Trap, as it conveys something real and relatable throughout.
The aesthetic, in more ways than one, is what makes this film so appealing. It really all comes down to the cinematography, though, as Directors of Photography Matthias Schubert and Michael P. Tedford bring this beautiful landscape to life. From the crashing waves on the beautiful shoreline to the vast ocean that surrounds Jamie and his life–Schubert and Tedford capture everything with grace and expertise. We become immersed in the narrative as a result of what this duo is able to bring to life; but beyond the incredible long shots they do something even more immersive–something far more impressive. A good portion of The Ghost Trap takes place on the water, and with that this duo must determine what the best way is to handle the movement of the water and the story being told while Jamie and his cohorts are on the water. They chose to capture the motion of the ocean (so to speak)–and once again viewers are immersed in this film, becoming one with Jamie and his story.
After suffering a tragic accident, Anja now experiences a delay with her speech and overall brain function. Grammer is tasked with ensuring that viewers buy this, that they are able to suspend disbelief and accept the sudden change in personality–and I’m not quite sure that I believe her. I’m not sure that Grammer pulls off the speech impediment effectively enough for me to become wrapped up in her story. With that, the primary story of The Ghost Trap was lost on me–and I then gravitated toward Jamie and his internal struggle more than anything else.
The Ghost Trap really is Jamie’s story–but it’s clear that Anya is meant to play a pivotal role in the whole of the film as well. Though, I was never attracted to her story, and I was constantly pulled away and back to Jamie. I rooted for him, I hoped that he would eventually find happiness by the film’s conclusion–and whether or not that comes to be isn’t important right now. Steiner does an impeccable job of bringing Jamie (and his story) to life, and the cinematography and its immersive nature help to juxtapose and exacerbate his story as well. In what wasn’t likely to appeal to me as a male viewer quickly shifted and became so brilliantly entertaining. The Ghost Trap is a must see.
Directed by James Khanlarian.
Written by K. Stephens & James Khanlarian.
Starring Zak Steiner, Greer Grammer, Sarah Catherine Hook, Taylor Takahashi, Steven Ogg, Sarah Clarke, Xander Berkeley, etc.
8/10 = WORTH RENTING OR BUYING
