Christian ‘Kang’ Bachini’s Escalation is an immersive nightmare that expresses the relationship between you and your inner demons in a remarkable way. With nods to one of the greatest filmmakers, Sam Raimi, in its theatrics and camera work, Bachini creates a haunting visual display that will instantly terrify. 

 

Bachini is the star, writer, director, and so much more for this short film, and he did a commendable job with all of it. With that idea in mind, Escalation is a fluent experience that takes you on a wild ride from beginning to end as you watch the brutal circumstances of Chris’ demons eating him literally alive. 

 

The film is not at all for the squeamish, as Bachini delivers on the gore and gruesome practical effects in almost every shot. Escalation will have your heart racing and your mind open to see what exactly our lead is set to endure throughout the night. With an isolated environment and wonderful set design, the only thing that could use a tweak is the villainous masked figure causing Chris to take on all this pain. Slick and creative subtitles could match the film’s impeccable style choices to better obtain the reasoning for the torture occuring. 

 

Nevertheless, Christian ‘Kang’ Bachini is a nightmare fueled force to be reckoned with, and with a larger budget, there’s absolutely no telling what dark magic Bachini would be able to conjure up.