Movie Reviews for Writers: Sinister

Sinister is the story of Ellison Oswalt, a true crime writer, and his family as they move to a famous "murder house" for him to write his new book -- one that he hopes will put his name back at the top of the charts after a few years off it. While living in the home, his daughter Ashley begins to act strangely. Ellison also discovers a cache of Super 8 footage that shows the truth behind the murders in the house -- and other murders. 

On the surface, this is probably one of the best ghost/supernatural monster stories to come out in years, and it (at least for me) was "scare the crap out of you" creepy. Nightmare-inducingly so. 

Beneath that surface, as we see Oswalt's struggle with his writing history and his new book, the movie has a lot to say about how we writers exist from book to book and how we are constantly needing to be and do more. 

Ten years ago, Ellison had a huge hit true crime book, one that helped shift the direction of a case and get the killer caught and brought to justice. But since? Crickets. Not only that, but he wrote a book that actually helped a killer go free. 

So, to say he is living with issues is one hell of an understatement. 

We Write Because We Have To

As writers we all have different catalysts for beginning to write, but ultimately we all keep writing for the same reason. We write because we are writers. We write because that's the action word that defines us. We write because we are driven to keep doing it. 

There are always thousands of other action words we could do -- cook, clean, manage, wait tables, code, etc. -- you name it, but because writing is the infection of choice, it's the thing we chase, the thing we do. 

No matter the crazy issues it creates of choices it causes us to make. 

Case in point, our "hero" (perhaps protagonist is a better noun), Ellison Oswald, as he is confronted by his wife about uprooting his family for his new project.

Tracy: You wanted to move here.

Ellison: No, I had to move here. The new story I'm writing is here.

Tracy: Why can't you just keep writing

in the old house?

Ellison: 'Cause I was gonna have to write college

textbooks to pay for that old house. And I can't do that.

Tracy: Why not?

Ellison: 'Cause I just can't.

As an author and a driven one, it wouldn't suffice to be a third-person removed from the book he's writing. If the crime happened on X marks the spot, the Ellison must be as close to that X as possible -- or in this case, living in the very home where X marked the murders. Of course his wife doesn't understand why that matters to him. His brain is write for being a specific kind of writer and hers is not. (But that's also what makes her more sane and more reliable. Don't shoot the messenger, okay?)

We Write What We Have To

This point can often get confused with the previous one. However, this issue deals more with genre and content (because yes, they are different animals) than reasons for  writing in the first place. 

There are so many options to choose from, but rather than us doing the choosing as writers, it seems more to me that the genre and concepts choose us more than we choose them.

Later in the film, Tracy explains to her husband that she wishes he would write a different kind of book.  

Tracy: I liked it better when you were writing fiction.

Ellison: Nobody likes my fiction.

Tracy: Maybe you should try again.

To a much lesser degree, my wife and experienced this too. While I was immersed in original super hero fiction during my Cyber Age Adventures days, she stopped reading my stories. She much preferred my literary stories and my adventure stories. But I had to be true to who I was as a writer, knowing full well that another inspiration might overtake me soon enough. 

You Can't Please Everyone

Hot on the heels of that previous point, just as my shift into writing super hero fiction didn't appeal to my wife, the stuff you create will not -- no matter how you try -- appeal to every reader. You might even end up with readers who hate -- even detest! -- your work, such as in this exchange between Ellison and the local sheriff. 

Ellison: I do have a couple of extra copies of Kentucky Blood if you want me to get one out and sign it for you.

Sheriff: No, thank you. sir.

Ellison: Is it the writing?

Sheriff: More a matter of content. You don't seem to care much for our profession.

Ellison: Not everybody in your profession gets it right.

Sheriff: I've read your books. Neither do you.

Ellison: Look...

Sheriff: You got it right in Kentucky Blood. I'll give you that. It's a fine piece of writing.

Ellison: But Cold Denver Morning, you got it wrong.

Granted, the sheriff isn't a fan because of something far more important than just the style of writing. It's about the impact on the work on his job and his fellow officers. 

Similarly, your work may get hate because of the topics you cover. People who detest any hint of "wokeness" probably don't appreciate my work much, because I value actively in my writing the ideas of diversity, inclusion, and equity. And that's okay. I have to be true to who I am when I write.

Sometimes that not pleasing attitude might hit closer to home, such as when Tracy and Ellison have a fight in front of the kids when one of them sees the crime scene photos in Ellison's office. 

Tracy: Your father writes about terrible, terrible things.

Ellison: I shouldn't be writing about it?

Tracy:  That's not what I meant.

Ellison: That's the way you said it.

"The way you said it" -- that's a truth that goes beyond the words our family and friends use to describe our work. Only, I often hear it as "not bad" or "Yeah, it's okay" when facial expressions and tone clearly indicate that the opposite is, in fact, true.  

We All Have Our Reasons for Writing

Not for Money and Fame?!

We all have our reasons for writing, and it is likely that someone (well-meaning or not) has questioned your sanity for that reason. Just ask any erotic novelist with a confused grandmother or great aunt. Or any horror writer with a penchant for graphic descriptions of mutilations and murders. People love to question how and why we could write "such a thing" (their words, not mine). 

At one point, Ellison is presenting and a fan wants to know why he does what he does.

Fan: This is pretty graphic stuff, so let me start by asking why you spend so much time investigating such grisly crime?

Ellison: Fame and money? No. I'm just kidding. The honest answer Is that I'm really driven by a sense of injustice. ...

Fan: So, ultimately, what feels better? Seeing justice done or seeing your book, Kentucky Blood, number one on the New York Times bestseller list?

Ellison:The justice without question. I'd rather cut my hands off than write a book for fame or money.

While I'd love to be able to say that "I'd rather cut my hands off than write a book for fame or money," I know it's a lie. Both for me and for our hero Ellison. He has already admitted in the movie that he's writing this book to get back on top. It's not for him. It's for his legacy as a writer. It's for the money his family needs to survive. 

For me, it's rarely about money, although the better paying gigs do tend to jump to the top of my "most important deadlines" list. (That's fair, right?) I do write for, well, maybe not fame, but to be remembered past my expiration date. I want my stories to outlast me. Nothing would please me more than to one day have one of my stories be part of a high school or college curriculum for a Literature or writing class. 

So We Beat On...

On that note, sometimes we keep writing even though our best years are behind us. However, never let that make you think your best stories are behind you. The market is a fickle mistress, and it changes lovers often. Sometimes it comes back but another night, but typically it just moves on. 

It's a reality even our hero has to face.

Ellison: I just need another hit. that's all. Just one more. I just...

Tracy: Kentucky Blood was ten years ago.

Ellison: And?

Tracy: And... what if that was your 15 minutes?

What if...? Well, the response for a writer with stories still to tell is "So what?" As long as there are tales to tell, there's work to do. Writers not only write, as the saying goes, they keep on writing. 

Writing Isn't Your Raison d'être

It can be difficult to separate the writing life from the reason for life (Itself? Itself. Thank you Rocky Horror Picture Show audience track.) My writing is not me. It may reveal me, but it is not me. The "me" is so much more than merely the stories I tell. The "me" has so much more to offer than just my stories. 

For some of us, we can get so wrapped up in not just writing, but "being" a writer that this aspect of my personality and persona can being the thing by which we define ourselves. But be careful. If that happens and you face a dry spell where stories don't come, it's easy to feel like a failure, an imposter, or a waste of space. 

Ellison:Just when I finish the book!

Tracy: This book isn't for us. It's for you.

Ellison: Tracy, don't say that. That's not true.

Tracy: It is true. There are plenty of other ways you can provide for this family. 

Ellison: Doing What? Teaching? Editing journalism textbooks? Don't you understand that writing is what gives my life meaning? These books are my legacy.

Tracy: I have always supported you doing what you love. Ellison. But writing isn't the meaning of your life.

For Ellison, this new book has become his white whale. That's a dangerous place to be. After all, remember what Moby Dick cost Captain Ahab. 

While a writer's dogged determination can be a powerful ally, it can also overstep, like it does with Ellison. Have you ever had to work at something else and relegate writing to your sideline gig? Of course, you have. So few of us make a full-time, pay all the bills career out of storytelling. It's natural. It's okay. You're no less a writer because another job has to take precedence to pay the bills. 

Some push through and make the payday needed. Others push through and end up in more debt and risk financial security. For Ellison, his pushing through brings about the ruin of his family in a way far deeper than mere money. But I'm not going to spoil it for you. Watch the movie and find out for yourself.