The Oak Room (film)

The Oak Room is a 2020 Canadian thriller film directed by Cody Calahan, produced by Citizen Skull Productions, and starring RJ Mitte, Ari Millen, Martin Roach, Nicholas Campbell, David Ferry and Peter Outerbridge. It is based on Peter Genoway's play of the same name.^[1]

The Oak Room
Film poster
Directed by	Cody Calahan
Written by	Peter Genoway
Based on	The Oak Room by Peter Genoway
Produced by	Chad Archibald Mark Myers
Starring	RJ Mitte Ari Millen Martin Roach Nicholas Campbell David Ferry Peter Outerbridge
Release date	August 2020 (2020-08) (Fantasia)
Running time	89 minutes
Countries	Canada USA
Language	English

Plot

During a raging snowstorm, a drifter returns home to the blue-collar bar located in the remote Canadian town where he was born. When he offers to settle an old debt with a grizzled bartender by telling him a story, the night's events quickly spin into a dark tale of mistaken identities, double-crosses and shocking violence.

Cast

• RJ Mitte as Steve
• Peter Outerbridge as Paul
• Ari Millen
• Martin Roach as Richard
• David Ferry
• Nicholas Campbell
• Amos Crawley
• Avery Esteves
• Coal Campbell
• Matt The Welder

Release

The film premiered at the Fantasia International Film Festival in August 2020.^[2]

Reception

The film has a 90% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 42 reviews, with an average rating of 7/10. The website's critics consensus reads: "The Oak Room contains a taut, spooky tale that proves southern gothic can flourish in the snowy north."^[3] Brian Shaer of Film Threat gave the film a 6.5 out of 10.^[4] Drew Tinnin of Dread Central awarded the film three and a half stars out of five.^[5] Meagan Navarro of Bloody Disgusting awarded the film three skulls out of five.^[6]

Martin Unsworth of Starburst gave the film a positive review and wrote, "...The Oak Room is no facsimile and always feels like its own beast. The direction is taut, building the atmosphere gradually until the tension is practically smothering during the denouement - a final shot that rivals Blood Simple for satisfaction."^[7]

Andrew Mack of Screen Anarchy also gave the film a positive review and wrote, "The film proves once again that sometimes all you need is a good story to captivate your audience. The Oak Room has at least three."^[8]