Heartland Horror: What Josiah Saw

Director Vincent Grashaw and screenwriter Robert Alan Dilts have made a sprawling familial horror drama with an excellent cast that you won't soon shake.

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There are a couple of interesting reunions afoot in director Vincent Grashaw’s “What Josiah Saw.” Robert Patrick and Nick Stahl both appeared in sequels to “The Terminator” franchise – the former as T-1000 in “Terminator 2: Judgment Day;” the latter as John Connor in “Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines.” Stahl and Kelli Garner were both in Larry Clark’s “Bully,” which is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year.

Reunions are key to “What Josiah Saw.” The Graham’s haven’t been whole in 17 years after the family’s matriarch Miriam hung herself from the largest tree on their farm. Josiah (Patrick) and his youngest son Thomas (Scott Haze, on a hot streak between this and the recent “Old Henry”) remained on the farm. Twins Eli (Stahl) and Mary (Garner) went off to live their own lives to little success. The twins are compelled to return to the farm when money men show interest in the property due to its oil prospects, but this will be a tall order as they’ll have to talk reluctant parties Josiah and Thomas into selling.

“What Josiah Saw” is told as a triptych with each of the Graham “children” receiving their own chapter. Thomas’ story is a slice of American gothic horror. Eli’s is a crime yarn that would feel right at home amid the Quentin Tarantino knockoffs of the late ‘90s and early aughts (albeit one of the good ones). Mary’s is an exercise in domestic drama. Rounding out the cast are Tony Hale of “Arrested Development” and “Veep” essaying the surprisingly serious role of Mary’s husband Ross and Jake Weber (best remembered from CBS’ “American Gothic,” HBO’s “Mind of the Married Man” and Zack Snyder’s “Dawn of the Dead” remake) as Boone, a gangster to whom Eli owes considerable gambling debts.

Comparisons have been made between “What Josiah Saw” and Bryan Bertino’s “The Dark and the Wicked” from last year (review here). While there are similarities, I must say “What Josiah Saw” resonated much more deeply with me even if it’s far more sprawling.

Director Grashaw (probably best known for wearing multiple hats – editor, actor, camera operator and producer – on indie cult film “Bellflower” … a movie I admittedly don’t dig, though I respect the hell out of it) and first-time screenwriter Robert Alan Dilts have made one of the best horror flicks of the year. This is a movie I had a hard time shaking and it announces both Grashaw and Dilts as exciting voices to watch in the years to come. They’re greatly aided by their talented cast who are uniformly great and from filming in Choctaw, Okla., which lends considerable atmosphere and authenticity to the proceedings.

I don’t know what’s scarier in “What Josiah Saw” – supernatural elements or the strife that exists between folks who are supposed to love each other the most? Grashaw and Dilts deserve a lot of credit for mixing and matching these thematics – it’s awfully commendable for a scene that was all sorts of creepy to begin with only to be recontextualized and made that much creepier further on down the road.