In the same year Christopher Alender directed The Old Ways he also directed
a number of episodes of Muppets Now. To say it’s a diversion is to
understate the fact as The Old Ways is a genuinely creepy and highly
competent foray into the horror genre, not really something you would
expect from someone whose last gig was with Kermit and Miss Piggy.
The story is pretty simple, Christina (Brigitte Kali Canales) returns to
her Mexican origins in order to investigate stories of local witchcraft and
sorcery. After she ventures into a cave she’s abducted by some locals who
claim she’s possessed by a strange demon.
Chaining her up in a darkened room the locals, including an elderly woman
with her face painted in a way that would give you the impression that
she’s just dropped in on the way to an England football match, start to
perform an exorcism on her.
Alender’s love of horror films is quite apparent, he’s produced a number
including Southbound and The Mortuary Collection, as The Old Ways plays out
pretty much like The Exorcist in the jungle.
The Old Ways might not feel that original but with its slow build-up of
tension and a number of genuine scares there’s certainly a lot worse horror
films out there.
