Glimmerubro
It is not deep, but it is fun to watch. It does have a bit more of an edge to it than other similar films.
Hayden Kane
There is, somehow, an interesting story here, as well as some good acting. There are also some good scenes
Rio Hayward
All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.
Staci Frederick
Blistering performances.
mjsreg
OK - so this film isn't going to appeal to the gore fans, but it is a decent film to watch.It is very well acted, the technical aspects are spot-in, and the story - well - it's almost there but not quite.This film moves along at a leisurely pace, so if you have the attention span of a goldfish it won't appeal to you, and probably won't if you are looking for light entertainment.This film will appeal to you if you like a story where you can get to know/understand more of the characters than just the superficial scream-fest characters we see in so many other films.One thing does let this film down very badly, and that it the ending. I just don't know what they were thinking ending a film like this.
soraprint
The film should be commended for an interesting premise, and some good filming on a low budget. However, there are many negatives to this movie, which when added up lead to an unenjoyable film. Firstly, the gratuitous sex scenes are both unnecessary for the plot and character development, and feel like a slightly perverted indulgence on the filmmakers behalf. Secondly, the sound. I was so disappointed that the sound recordings in many scenes and shots were below par. Bad sound can take you out of the moment, and remind you this is a low budget Kickstarter movie. The plot builds acceptably, but loses coherence in the 3rd act and ends without any conclusion that would be satisfying. Sometimes an "open to interpretation" ending is brilliant... sometimes it is a poor attempt to hide a mess of a conclusion; the equivalent of "and then I woke up". Ayla falls into the latter category. This could have been a much better film if the horror/supernatural element built to something that actually induced terror. It doesn't, so it isn't.
chicagoslim
Brother and dead sister sexual tension with a "wait, was that the ending?"
deathbyradiatin
Ayla is a profound and mournful little film dwelling on loss, grief and mental illness. A man can have a supportive family, a girlfriend who loves him, and still be plagued by his own personal demons. Elton is obsessed with the life he never had with his sister who died tragically when she was four. This plays into his own mental health issues that cause him to self-harm. In a moment of bizarre fantasy he is able to will his sister into being. But how does this grown woman who has miraculously appeared in his life even know how to be his sister? Many of us think about those in our lives we miss or wish we could have known better but when death separates us, what is it that we're actually bringing back?This is a low budget movie funded through Kickstarter so don't expect grandiose special effects or lavish sets and settings. Instead you get a deeply committed cast willing to do what it takes to make these feel like real, sympathetic characters that you can relate to. Ayla is a film that is as much a family drama and a meditation on grief as much as it is a horror film. Much is left to the audience to interpret and figure out how they feel about what happens, it's taken me most of a week to be able to really process what the film is about in my own head. If you get a chance to see this on the festival circuit please do, you're not going to find much else at there quite like Ayla.