Hello internet people, Slick Dungeon here back to review another film for you all. Just a quick note that I was granted a screener viewing of it by the production company but I was not paid or compensated in any other way for this review.

Soul to Squeeze is a new experimental film available on Amazon Prime created by W.M. Weikart and Andrew Rivas. It stars Michael Thomas Santos as the main character Jacob.

What is Soul to Squeeze about?

This is a film that is a bit hard to pin down. It is about a man named Jacob who has signed up for an experimental psychological treatment. In the treatment, his physical body exists inside of a physical manifestation of his subconscious. Rather than go through lengthy talk therapy, Jacob dives deep into the physical reality of his own mind, confronting challenges small and large. The subconscious doesn’t always make sense on first glance. That’s represented in both the visuals and the story.

The film is also experimental on the visual level. As Jacob goes through his treatment, the aspect ratio of the film changes. The further he goes to confront his issues, the wider the screen becomes. Some might consider this a gimmick but in this case it serves more as a storytelling technique.

While there is a story here and we gather bits of information along the way, the film isn’t exactly linear in the delivery. The film makers trust the audience to fill in the blanks and a lot of what happens in the movie feels surreal. This is absolutely intentional.

Most of the time the film does a good job of allowing us into Jacob’s mind without belaboring the point. There are a few gross moments in the film but nothing the average adult can’t handle.

The Good

I always like to see film makers try new things. And while this is low budget, it is decidedly trying something new.

Michael Thomas Santos delivers a strong performance here and had to go through some physical challenges, such as gaining and losing weight, for the film. And the effort pays off as he’s quite watchable in the film.

For a low budget film the effects in the movie are quite good and there are some striking visuals that will stay with you after viewing.

The Bad

For this film, I don’t see a lot of bad here. It’s more a matter of taste. To enjoy the movie there are a few things you’ll need to be comfortable with.

First, you’ll need to be okay with watching something that is experimenting so as the film makes some bold choices you have to be ready for that.

Second, the pacing is fairly slow. But this makes sense as the majority of the work is done by one actor in the film. There are a few other actors but there are a ton of scenes with just one person in a quiet environment.

Third, this film is dealing with psychological issues from every day anxieties to outright guilt and grief so you’ll need to be okay delving into those topics.

But if you can handle all of those things, you’ll find value here.

The Ugly

If I don’t see a lot of bad in the film, I’m not going to find a lot of ugly here either but I do have just a couple of words of caution for anyone considering watching this. As I said before, there are some gross out moments. Things I would call very light body horror, although this is not a horror film. There are also several moments that dive into bits of our psyche which can be frightening. But I would in no way call this a psychological horror or thriller.

It also deals with some loss so if that’s something that might bother you as a viewer, use caution before watching.

Soul to Squeeze In Conclusion

In a time when it’s harder and harder to find a film trying to do something new, Soul to Squeeze is a refreshing view. It’s a short film (around 90 minutes) so it’s not a big time investment. But this is not for everyone.

If you are the type of person who likes experimental films, this is a good one to watch. It’s low budget but the budget was used quite effectively here, not just in service of shock value, but also as a storytelling technique.

Personally, I’d like to see what someone like W.M. Weikart would do with a larger budget and a bit more of a linear story. The only way that will happen is if people rent or buy Soul to Squeeze. It’s $10 to buy and $3 to rent so typically not a huge financial hit to support these film makers.

If you do end up watching it, I’d love to hear what you thought in the comments!

P.S. Want to see another review of an independent film? Check out my review of The Plastic Men.