The Man in the Shadows

**_A troubled marriage where the wife is haunted by a shadowy figure_** This is the brainchild of Adam Tomlinson, who came up with the story and has a key role, as well as produced. You might remember him as the creepy-looking tall guy featured in numerous episodes of Scare Tactics. It’s a slow-burn mystery/horror with a little cabin-in-the-woods thrown in and a good wintry backdrop. While not as ambitious, the tone is akin to “The Mothman Prophecies,” just made on a fraction of the budget. In other words, this is proficiently made with quality acting and mood, despite being an indie. Although it does get tedious for about ten minutes around the 50-minutes mark, things perk up in the last act. Plus, the script explores several interesting angles concerning the topic and throws in a well-done hypnotism sequence in which you see what’s happening in the mind of the one mesmerized. Sure, critics mock it with blurbs like “Not tonight, honey, I have a headache ’cuz of the shadow man,” but I think it’s better than that. It’s simplistic, yet it effectively brings to life the three main characters and the ending is rousing, not to mention thought-provoking. It runs 1h 28m and was shot in the winter of 2017 at Toronto and Point Perry to the northeast of there, as well as Muskoka, which is another 2-hour drive north. GRADE: B-