‘The Taking of Deborah Logan’: Ten Years of Terror

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Ten years ago this month, a new found footage horror film quietly made its way onto Netflix. Little fanfare marked its arrival, but its scares were impressive, its script quietly disturbing, and its central character terrifying in all the best ways. It was The Taking of Deborah Logan, and it has earned its cult status many times over since 2014.

Like most, I discovered the film by accident. I was looking for something to watch late one night and it popped up in my suggestions. I’d heard nothing at all about it, but two things intrigued me right away.

First, there was the film’s star in the title role, Jill Larson. I’d grown up with a mom and grandmother who never missed an episode of “All My Children” if they could help it. Larson played the role of Opal, a kooky and often hilarious resident of Pine Valley who never missed an opportunity to give the big wigs a run for their money. I adored the actress and had basically grown up watching her.

But what was she doing in a horror movie?! I would find out later that she wasn’t sure herself. She confessed in an interview with me that she’d never even seen a horror movie before taking on the role. She tried watching The Exorcist after being cast, and she didn’t make it through. But I digress.

Then, there was the subject matter. Deborah suffers from Alzheimer’s a debilitating disease that slowly separates its victims from everyone around them. I knew a lot about the disease and its dementia cousins. Three of my four grandparents had suffered some form of the disease by the time they passed. You want to talk about real horror? Learn about Alzheimer’s and pray no one you know ever succumbs.

So we had a star I loved and a subject that I knew had the potential to be terrifying. What more could I ask for?

As the credits rolled, I was absolutely shook. I felt like I’d been on a roller coaster of emotions that began with understanding and ended in terror. That’s what The Taking of Deborah Logan was for me, and I had to know more.

So, I reached out to director and co-writer Adam Robitel for an interview, and found a kindred spirit. I made it my mission to tell every horror fan I knew about this film, and that’s exactly what I did. It’s been on numerous lists I’ve written over the years, interviewed Miss Larson (a fact that cemented for my mother that I might be a real writer), and, when the anniversary was approaching, iHorror owner Anthony Pernicka reached out to me to ask if I’d do a commemorative article talking about the film.

Ten years? Really? I can’t even believe it’s been that long.

What I can believe is that people still talk about this film. I’ve had the joy of watching some of my favorite YouTube reactors–Alanda Parker, The Horror Bandwagon, and Zzavid to name a few–have the life scared out of them while getting to know Deborah.

The reason is as simple as it is infinitely complicated: The Taking of Deborah Logan just happens to be a great film made up of equally impressive parts.

It all began with the script. Adam Robitel and Gavin Heffernan had both been writing (and writing and writing) but when they decided to make a feature, they didn’t just want scares and screams.

Though I have gotten to know Robitel quite well over the years, I am not privy to their writing method. What I do know is that they understood what so many writers don’t. A great horror film needs a strong story that could work without the scares. It needs a strong foundation to grow from, and these guys had that down pat.

Deborah’s illness has brought Sarah to live with her, leaving her girlfriend hundreds of miles away. The daughter deals with her mother’s constant microagressions about her clothes and her hair and the way she carries herself. Why? Because she still loves her mother. The fact that she’s drinking herself to death over it just adds another layer of tension to the household.

In short, they were already at the end of their rapidly fraying rope. Add spirit possession to the mix and they were falling over the edge.

It didn’t hurt that Larson and actress Anne Ramsay (A League of their Own) had such incredible chemistry. It wasn’t hard to believe they were mother and daughter. The genuinine affection between the two was palpable.

They weren’t alone in the film, of course. Michelle Ang, Brett Gentile, and Jeremy Decarlos co-star as the film crew on site to create their documentary who get so much more than what they bargained for. Ang is particularly good as PhD student and director Mia, and Decarlos gives a brilliant performance though he’s rarely seen on camera. It’s his Luis that carries us from scene to scene, pulling us into the horror.

As I was preparing to write this article, I sat down to rewatch the film for the first time in a few months. Yes, it’s one of the films on rotation in my house, and it’s a bit of a surreal experience. You see, I have one of the original posters of the film hanging on my wall. Deborah Logan all in red, staring through the frame. I swear no matter where I stand in my living room, she’s looking at me.

Deborah’s eyes aside, I was struck once again by how fresh it felt. How it still held up despite the years since its release. Deborah Logan is still terrifying, and I’m here for it every time.

If you happen to be one of the few who have never seen the film, you owe it to yourself to add it to your Halloween watch list. Better late than never. And check out the new special edition blu ray coming soon from HorrorPack.