After the mediatic and sordid case of Harvey Weinstein‘s constant abuse of female actors and filmmakers, we could say a new genre bloomed in the movies industry. Critics are talking about the post-#MeToo era where the creators, mostly female but not only, develop stories where the characters reveal against a male oppressive figure. It doesn’t always have to be explicitly a sexual offense, but also the abuse of power. In horror-thriller Take Back the Night (2021) use a monster creature as a metaphor for the sexist and male-dominated scourge of our world and, in extension, the film industry.
Finding herself the victim of a violent monster attack, Jane launches a vigilante campaign to hunt the beast that tried to kill her. Jane’s efforts intensify, but her troubling history of drug use and mental illness bubbles to the surface causing her family, community, and authorities to question the authenticity of her account. Suddenly alone in her fight, Jane starts to doubt her own memory of the attack to doubt if Monster exists at all.
This is the debut feature of Gia Elliot, who is also the producer, co-writer, and cinematographer of the film. Her lead actress, Emma Fitzpatrick, is the co-writer and also producer of Take Back the Night (2021).
Emma Fitzpatrick is known for her participation in popular films like The Social Network (2010), and In Time (2011), and will appear in the upcoming horror sequel The Collected. With her, Angela Gulner, Jennifer Lafleur, Sibongile Mlambo, Corina Kinnear, Kati Sharp, and Natalie D’Amico also star.
Take Back the Night (2021) had its world premiere at the Popcorn Frights Film Festival on August 14 2021 winning the Jury Award for Best Debut Film. After that, it was part of several genre film festivals where it collected a good amount of awards and nominations including the George A. Romero Fellowship at Salem Horror Fest, Best Director at Nightmares Film Festival, and Best Cinematography, Best Actress, and Best Feature Film at the Horrible Imaginings Film Festival.
Dark Sky Films has the distribution rights for Take Back the Night (2021) and will release the film on March 4, 2022, in selected theaters and on digital platforms like Apple TV, Prime Video, and Vudu amongst others.
Watch here the trailer for Take Back the Night (2021).
