Worth remembering that this is s debut film from an independent film maker so you are not going to get dazzling CGI effects you would associate with major studios but that said I thought for the most part the photography was handled well and there's a recurring motif of pine trees giving an icy, introverted feel much in a similar vein to the much longer and higher budget Midsommar. Credit is also due to the soundtrack which adds a significant part to the suspense and build up of tension in the film.
General tone is Hollyoaks meets Wickerman which may not be everyone's cup of tea but the lead character's backstory (a survivor of a vicious sexual assault) provides more than adequate material for you to feel invested in how her story progresses. It was also refreshing that the main protagonist was a queer woman who through the progress of the weekend gradually reestablishes a relationship with an old flame. There a number of unsettling moments and one of the character's fear of old age yields a genuinely spine tingling moment.
I don't say this of many films but I feel that this would have benefited from being a much longer film. The main problem I had with the film was that most of the characters seemed rather underwritten and I feel the horror would have been that much more effective if there was more time to work in character motivation. One glaring example is the older lady who despite being part of the cult seems to be kindly disposed to towards the protagonists and keen to help warn them and provide them with advice - why would she do this and wouldn't she be risking the cult's displeasure in doing so. There is no sense of why she is motivated to help or any sense of any risk or danger to her personally and it seems that she was only used as an over telegraphed plot device which was a sadly wasted opportunity. It was also quite easy to predict that the young make hitchhiker was up to no good but again he exists as a wafer thin plot device. The strength of the relationship between the two leads was key to their eventual survival but unfortunately you never really get a the full idea of how strong their bond was pre and post the re-kindling of their relationship, indeed it would have been interesting to explore female connection between the group as a whole and too see how that would have acted as a majikal force running as an antagonist to the dark spell that had been cast on them.
Had the film had more running time it could have explored these under utilised characters and added a a few more elements to add to the build up of suspense. As the film does not (thankfully) rely on cheap jump scares I feel that that is an important thing to note.
The ending was a little too abrupt for my liking . I think the message was a very worthy and moving one for any one who has survived trauma and abuse which is why I was disappointed that this final segment was far too short (and indeed building this lead story at early segments in the film would have rendered this far more powerful) Really we needed to have had a far greater feeling of her being in jeopardy her internal and external struggle which would have afforded a much greater sense of relief at her final get away.
There are a lot of genuinely good ideas and themes in this film and along with a fresh British cast and stunning photography makes this a worthy and decent debut in the horror genre.
General tone is Hollyoaks meets Wickerman which may not be everyone's cup of tea but the lead character's backstory (a survivor of a vicious sexual assault) provides more than adequate material for you to feel invested in how her story progresses. It was also refreshing that the main protagonist was a queer woman who through the progress of the weekend gradually reestablishes a relationship with an old flame. There a number of unsettling moments and one of the character's fear of old age yields a genuinely spine tingling moment.
I don't say this of many films but I feel that this would have benefited from being a much longer film. The main problem I had with the film was that most of the characters seemed rather underwritten and I feel the horror would have been that much more effective if there was more time to work in character motivation. One glaring example is the older lady who despite being part of the cult seems to be kindly disposed to towards the protagonists and keen to help warn them and provide them with advice - why would she do this and wouldn't she be risking the cult's displeasure in doing so. There is no sense of why she is motivated to help or any sense of any risk or danger to her personally and it seems that she was only used as an over telegraphed plot device which was a sadly wasted opportunity. It was also quite easy to predict that the young make hitchhiker was up to no good but again he exists as a wafer thin plot device. The strength of the relationship between the two leads was key to their eventual survival but unfortunately you never really get a the full idea of how strong their bond was pre and post the re-kindling of their relationship, indeed it would have been interesting to explore female connection between the group as a whole and too see how that would have acted as a majikal force running as an antagonist to the dark spell that had been cast on them.
Had the film had more running time it could have explored these under utilised characters and added a a few more elements to add to the build up of suspense. As the film does not (thankfully) rely on cheap jump scares I feel that that is an important thing to note.
The ending was a little too abrupt for my liking . I think the message was a very worthy and moving one for any one who has survived trauma and abuse which is why I was disappointed that this final segment was far too short (and indeed building this lead story at early segments in the film would have rendered this far more powerful) Really we needed to have had a far greater feeling of her being in jeopardy her internal and external struggle which would have afforded a much greater sense of relief at her final get away.
There are a lot of genuinely good ideas and themes in this film and along with a fresh British cast and stunning photography makes this a worthy and decent debut in the horror genre.