I learn about good films to watch from both my sister Lucy and my hairstylist, Keith. Keith of Taylor’s Hair Salon had introduced me to producer and actress Suzann Toni Petrongolo a few months back, which led to a film review and interview of The Dirty South. This trip to the salon earned me a gem called Herman.
Herman
Herman is a dark psychological thriller which was released on VOD via Scatena & Rosner Films. It is now available on Prime. Written and directed by Andrew Vogel, and starring Colin Ward, Suzann Toni Petrongolo, Lawson Greyson, Alex James, Soni Theresa Montgomery, and Lamar Alexander, the story takes place in an isolated mountain cabin with a convent not far from the property.
This is Andrew Vogel’s feature debut on the indie film, but he masterfully pulls us into Herman’s battle with the dark forces that arrive with a winter storm. Herman, played skillfully by Colin Ward, has isolated himself from the rest of humanity, except for the sparse interactions with the nuns at the nearby convent. The flashbacks give hints to Herman’s state of mind. He had a wife. Her name was Alice. She either left him or died. We know that Herman was self-absorbed in his work and suspicious of his wife’s activities. His anger and his despair are palpable, so it is no surprise when we realize that he has planned out his suicide.
The violent storm not only brings three strangers to his home but also reveals a dark secret. The two nuns, Sister Mary (Suzann Toni Petrongolo) and Sister Josephine (Soni Theresa Montgomery), seek comfort because their convent has lost power, and the elderly Sister Josephine, who is also blind, cannot tolerate the cold. The nuns have interfered with Herman’s plans, but they are soon joined by a third intruder when a lost hiker, James (Alex James) seeks refuge from the storm.
Unwanted memories and an evil darkness begin to surround Herman and the people who are now stranded in the cabin. Sister Josephine, although blind, can see what Herman cannot or won’t admit, and all the while the storm outside rages on, until it delivers one more mystery and a fourth unwanted intruder. What does Max (Andrew Vogel) know about Alice (Lawson Greyson)?
Conclusion
I was not disappointed with Herman and must thank Keith for giving me a heads-up that Suzann Toni Petrongolo had produced another hit film. The film is frightening, but not what you would normally expect from a horror film. Instead, Herman explores the darkness of deep regret and guilt. No monster under the bed can frighten us more than our own dirty deeds. Even when Max reveals what happened to Alice, Herman is unable to forgive.
At the beginning of the film, there is a quote: The psychotic drowns in the same waters in which the mystic swims with delight. I will go one step further…Hell is occupied by those who cannot forgive themselves.
Watch Herman. It is an excellent character study of a tortured mind.