Art of a Hit is a new horror flick about how the members of the rock band Excelsior journey to a 1,000-year-old French château to make a comeback album in an attempt to reclaim their glory from the 90s. However, as tensions mount, bristling with disagreements, they soon realize they’re up against more than the pressures of success. Will this flick be music to your ears?

Directed by Gaelan Connell, it was filmed on location in Dordogne, France. Impressive wide shots showcase the stunning landscape and gorgeous castle. At times Connell uses camera rotations to pan from character to character rather than the standard style of shooting and editing a conversation. At night, the lead guitarist/ singer, Ryan, has paranormal experiences involving suits of armour. Connell knows how to build suspense by placing the camera in front of a character with negative space on one side, but instead of going for a cheap jump scare, he has something blurry move in the background. It shows confidence in his direction because it forces the viewer to pay attention.

Written by Gaelan Connell and Charlie Saxton, the script does a good job characterizing the group’s chemistry, exploring the friendships and the camaraderie of being band members, but there’s a confusing subplot about a former bandmate. Ryan is supposed to be haunted by his past, so is it all in his head, or is the castle actually haunted? It’s unclear. It feels like 2 scripts stapled together at the midpoint. Halfway through, the plot loses focus, completely abandoning the supernatural elements to become a soap opera about the drama between the bandmates. One would think such an isolated location would be a key plot device but it’s not. Perhaps more drafts of the script could have expanded on ideas that worked and cut out ideas that didn’t work.

The film stars Ryan Donowho, Charlie Saxton, Tim Jo, Rob Raco, Allie MacDonald, James Earl, and David Valdes. They all do a great job filling their respective roles. They’re believable when it comes to having history together to sell the gravity of the emotional scenes. MacDonald steals the show as the quirky, extroverted drummer.

I love the original songs created for the film. They have a gritty, 90s hard rock vibe. They’re very good.

Overall, this wasn’t music to my ears. The directing is self-assured and the cast is first-rate. The issue is in the writing. The script starts strong, slows down in the middle, and has an anticlimactic conclusion. Without a cohesive story structure, the writing comes across as unfocused, therefore, pandering to people’s baser instincts while going off the rails into mundane territory. It feels like 2 movies in 1. If the horror elements were removed from the film completely it would play better as a dramatic cautionary tale about themes of creative artistry in your craft, artistic legacy, success, failure, inspiration, finding family, and treachery. What could’ve been a compelling, haunted house story with a rock music spin on things ends up being overtly slow, boring, overly convoluted, and disappointing. I did like how the final scene is a snarky, cynical, satirical view of the music industry. It’s a great payoff moment from a joke stated earlier. Aside from that instance and the music itself, the writing is severely lacking in the creative department, ironically. And remember, Come as You Are but Teen Spirit better be the only thing I Smell.