Intensity: 🚫 out of 🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸
Directed by Sean Whalen
Sock monster! Obviously, the world has been yearning for a monster made from the forgotten socks left at a laundromat. Yearn no longer, world! Crust brings you the answer to all your prayers.
Crust: The Players
- Sean Whalen [3 From Hell (2019)]: Vegas, the down and out ex-child star co-owner of the laundromat.
- Daniel Roebuck [Terrifier 3 (2024)]: Russ, Vegas’ business partner and full-time alcoholic.
- Rebekah Kennedy [Traumatika (2024)]: Nila, the new love interest in Vegas’ life.
- Felissa Rose [Sleepaway Camp (1983)]: Laura, the previous love interest in Vegas’ life.
- Alan Ruck [Freaky (2020)]: Randy, producer of the TV show that made Vegas a famous child actor many years ago.
Crust: The Breakdown
Synopsis
Vegas is a has-been child star living in obscurity. He runs a laundromat with his friend, Russ, and leads a lonely, loveless life. As part of his laundromat duties, Vegas collects the socks people accidentally leave in the dryers and tosses them into a pile in his office.
Through the mystical, paranormal force of his abject loneliness (and quite a few bodily fluids we won’t get into here), Vegas accidentally brings the pile of abandoned socks to life.
As you might have guessed, he names this strange, but cuddly new friend Crust and quickly discovers how protective Crust can be when it comes to anyone who might be giving Vegas a hard time.
Production
Crust very nearly takes place entirely within the dingy laundromat. Early on in the film events occur that make it difficult for Vegas to leave which gives the entire film a heavy feeling of claustrophobia and oppression. Additionally, shooting the vast majority of the film in black and white adds even more to the feelings of depression and loneliness.
The camera work in Crust is adequate. It’s nothing spectacular, but it gets the job done. Special effects, as you might expect, are minimal. Crust itself is a big puppet, but there are a few digital effects here and there.
The whole thing almost feels like a stage play on account of the single set. This keeps the costs down and forces the audience to focus on the performances. Which, in this case, works great.
Cast and Story
Sean Whalen is a prime example of the “Hey! It’s that guy!” actor. He’s a hard working man who’s been in TV shows, TV movies, big screen films, and even Slayer music videos. He’s at his best when playing off another actor so things feel a bit uneven in Crust from time to time (his dance number was a little cringe), but he pulls it off for the most part. The supporting roles of Alan Ruck and Daniel Roebuck give Crust a nice boost, though.
Pacing in Crust is also a tad hit or miss. If you’re going to confine the audience to a single location, you’ve got to keep their attention with action or dialog. Crust does its best and mostly succeeds.
Where Crust really shines is in its outright weirdness. The laundromat denizens are all slightly odd caricatures of themselves. The media personalities and entertainment industry folks are excellently satirized. And the sock monster is just plain kooky all on its own.
Summary
Watching Crust brought back memories of wonderfully bizarre late-80s films like Track 29 (1988) and How to Get Ahead in Advertising (1989). Slow moving, kinda uncomfortable, and pretty strange.
With Crust as his directorial debut feature film, Whalen has created an odd little movie that has a lot to say about loneliness, fame, and second chances. And it does it all with a surprising amount of heart.
And also socks.
Review by Robert Zilbauer.