JP Nunez
Like a lot of horror subgenres, home invasion films have the potential to get stale very quickly. We can only stomach so many The Strangers rip-offs before we start looking elsewhere for our homebound thrills, so whenever I hear about a home invasion movie with even a slight twist, it immediately catches my eye. That’s what drew me to Property, and it’s also why I wanted to give Crumb Catcher a watch. This film promised to put a darkly comedic spin on a classic horror template, and I couldn’t wait to see if it delivered.
Crumb Catcher was written and directed by Chris Skotchdopole, and it stars Rigo Garay, Ella Rae Peck, Lorraine Farris, and John Speredakos. In the movie, Leah and Shane are a newly married couple on their honeymoon, but their relationship is already on the brink of collapse. From the very first scene, they just can’t seem to get on the same page, and that’s only the beginning of their problems.
On their first night away, an older couple, John and Rose, arrive at their house unexpectedly, and they’re looking for investors for John’s newest invention, a device called the crumb catcher. They won’t take no for an answer, and they’re even willing to resort to blackmail to raise the money they need to get this idea off the ground.
For the first 25 minutes or so, Crumb Catcher just lets us get to know Leah and Shane, and this part of the film is a pretty mixed bag. On the one hand, actors Rigo Garay and Ella Rae Peck play these characters quite well, so I had no trouble buying into them and their story. But despite those convincing performances, I was never able to enjoy watching them.
Like I said before, Shane and Leah’s marriage is on the rocks from day one, and it gets worse as the movie goes on. It feels like you’re just watching their relationship die a slow, painful death, and that’s not a fun experience.
In particular, Shane’s father seems to be one of the main bones of contention between them, but Crumb Catcher never explains exactly what the problem is. It gives us a few vague hints here and there about what he might’ve done, but we never get any real answers. It’s the cardinal cinematic sin of merely saying something rather than showing it, so whenever this man becomes the topic of conversation, the friction between Leah and her husband loses a lot of its believability.
However, once we reach the 25-minute mark, the film gets noticeably better. John comes into the picture, and he’s the kind of unwelcome guest who just won’t leave. As he talks to his unwitting hosts, he seamlessly switches from one topic to another, and actor John Speredakos imbues the character with the kind of overpowering personality that makes you totally understand why Shane and Leah don’t just push him out the door.
He’s really fun to watch whenever he’s on screen, and when he and Rose finally start their pitch for the crumb catcher, he gets even better. They put on an elaborate show that makes you wonder just what this thing could be, so you almost can’t help but hang on John’s every word as you wait for the big reveal.
On top of all that, John is also a really funny character. He’s the source of most of the movie’s humor, and he makes for a number of genuinely laugh-out-loud moments. For example, he sometimes mispronounces words in a comedically confident way, and there’s even a hilarious scene where he drops his pants in front of Shane. Now, I’m not sure what he planned to accomplish with that bizarre action, but it leads to quite possibly the funniest line in the film.
However, as much as I enjoyed watching this guy, he’s not quite good enough to carry Crumb Catcher all by himself. Even after John arrives on the scene, Leah and Shane’s relationship still drags the movie down quite a bit, so when I got to the third act, I found myself desperately hoping for a bonkers finale that would end the experience on a high note.
But unfortunately, Crumb Catcher goes out with a whimper instead of a bang. The ending never really goes all out on the horror, so even though there’s one moment that I quite enjoyed, on the whole, the third act is disappointingly tame.
To be fair, that’s not a bad thing in itself. I don’t need every film to end in a bloody outburst of gore and violence, so if the first two acts of Crumb Catcher were better, the finale we got would’ve been perfectly fine. But since the movie really needed to make an impression in the last act, the ending was simply not good enough.
So at the end of the day, I’m sad to report that I wouldn’t recommend Crumb Catcher. Granted, this film isn’t nearly as bad as, say, The Strangers: Chapter 1 or Tarot, so it’s by no means a must-avoid. There’s enough good in here that it’s far from a waste of time, so if you still want to give it a watch, I think you’ll get something out of the experience. But if you’re at all on the fence about this movie, I suggest giving it a pass.
Crumb Catcher is set to hit select theaters on July 19.
