March 16, 2020
INTO THE DARK’s Latest Holiday Episode, CRAWLERS, Given a Spooky Score by Ceiri Torjussen
– Randall D. Larson
CRAWLERS is the latest film from the American horror anthology web television series INTO THE DARK. The twelve-episode series is produced for Hulu, with the first season premiering in October, 2018 and the second in October, 2019 and continuing into 2020. The series is produced by the television branch of Blumhouse Productions, with founder Jason Blum executive producing every episode. The theme of each episode is inspired by a holiday occurring during the month of its release.
Each episode has a different director and is scored by a different composer, usually one the director has worked with before. The roster of episode composers includes Bear McCreary, The Newton Brothers, Michael Wandmacher, Matthew Margeson, Douglas Pipes, Frederick Wiedmann, Ceiri Torjussen, among others.
CRAWLERS is the most recent episode, debuting on Hulu March 6, 2020, which stars Giorgia Whigham, Pepi Sonuga, Cameron Fuller, Olivia Liang, and Jude Demorest. The story revolves around a wild pub-crawl on Saint Patrick’ Day night, in which three unlikely friends band together to save a college town from a vicious horde of body-switching aliens. It’s a fun mix of humor and horror, nicely augmented by a mysterious and modernistic electronica score by Welsh-born, Los Angeles-based composer Ceiri (pronounced Kay-Ree) Torjussen (BIG ASS SPIDER!, PRIMAL RAGE, BURN, ALL CREATURES HERE BELOW) who provides a palpable and effective mix of energy, eeriness, and eloquence.
INTO THE DARK: CRAWLERS “has an ‘80s vibe but modern things to say about gender roles and believing women,” wrote Brian Tallerico in a review for rogerebert.com. “Like a lot of these films, the ideas are often better than the execution, but this one works more than most, anchored by its clever concept and the young performers committed to pulling it off… CRAWLERS effectively balances its characters with a campier approach to horror that reminded me of ‘80s cult classics like NIGHT OF THE COMET, which feels like a definite influence here. And the young cast helps elevate material that doesn’t rely too heavily on its gender-issue subtext but also doesn’t ignore it.”
Writing about Torjussen’s score in a review posted at nofspodcast.com, Jessica Rose comments that Torjussen’s music “is reminiscent of early millennium sci-fi thrillers, but bites with effective modish intensity.”
For more information on the composer, see http://ceiri.com/
Watch the film’s trailer:
