Turn Around, a 14-minute indie horror/thriller from director Luke Ostermiller, centers around Nathan (Scott K. Leslie), a young man who is both nervous and anxious about a planned weekend camping getaway with the girl of his dreams, Amber (Cali June). After an ominous snag in their plans, their lives are changed forever. 

Likely to find a solid life on the indie and horror film festival circuits, Turn Around feels like a treatment for a feature, a fact that both builds anticipation in the film and, at times, works against its success as a short film. While this may or may not be the case, Turn Around tells a modestly familiar yet interesting story that would benefit from a little more time with the characters. 

Turn Around is the kind of film that's difficult to describe in great detail without giving it all away, something that I always abhor as it takes away from the fun of watching the film. However, suffice it to say that Nathan's decision to chase after Amber when she disappears in the woods is more than a little ill-conceived and nothing is going to be quite played out as expected with a subtle, fun twist serveas as one of those cinematic "Aha!" moments. 

The film's ensemble cast does a fine job portraying the chilling nature of it all, while Ostermiller's direction gives the film an extra spark of tension while Adrian Eledge's storyline, even slighter than one might hope, builds effective chills throughout the film's fourteen minutes. 

Only recently completed, Turn Around marks a partnership between D&O Studios, Inc. and Ostermiller's Loste Films LLC that resulted in D&O's acquiring of Loste early in 2016. For more information on the film, be sure to visit its official website.

© Written by Richard Propes
The Independent Critic