Director: Daniel Stamm
Year: 2026
Country: United Kingdom/USA
Alternate Titles: N/A
Genre: Supernatural
Plot:
After her mother's death, a woman moves into her house to help care for her psychologically wounded brother as he struggles to get his troubled past together, but it turns out that not only his haunted past but a series of strange events around town might be the result of a demonic influence over him.
Review:
Overall, this was a solid if generally unremarkable genre effort. Among its better factors is a decent and generally intriguing storyline that seeks to establish a dark undercurrent going through the main character's mindset. Focusing on his traumatic childhood, where he witnessed a slew of haunting and traumatic incidents as a kid but also managed to undergo a slew of psychologically damaging effects as a veteran, which is all brought together as the main reason why he's as unbalanced as he's presented throughout here, there's a solid starting point here to bring this about quite nicely. The experiences featured here manage to highlight the kind of noteworthy and genuinely affecting incidents that make what goes on in the second half, as we focus on the strange accidents around the town, feel as though it's building to something worthwhile.
That second half, where the whole supernatural threat comes to the forefront, makes for a rather strong time, even if it also highlights the main drawback of this one. There's a lot to like here in trying to unravel the mystery about what's going on, involving the change from the quick flash visions and background hauntings of the different spirits wandering around the house, causing several solid jump scares when it comes out of nowhere, while attempting to explain away the brother's growing insanity with his behavior. However, the scares here are so generally brief that there's not much to them, as they're over before they really register what's happening, as split-second shots of something moving in the background don't inspire much fear if you happen to miss it. Likewise, trying to bring up the kinds of behaviors he exhibits is a bit underwhelming, as the idea of him going around secretly at night or hiding out in the basement isn't that scary either, so while it works well for understanding his plight, there's some trouble with how this comes together.
On top of that, there’s also the overriding factor here in how formulaic this all becomes, trying to go through the various cliches present in here. The early half, where we meet the kooky neighbor and the relationship she has with the brother, as well as the liv lives of others around town trying to help her adjust to the move based on her personal struggles, manages to make for an intriguing start to this but also hits pretty much most of the notes required of this setup involving a person from the outside world meeting a kooky local from a close-knit, isolated community. From her nervous habits that are played off as weird but would send any normal person running away immediately the second they notice it, or bizarre conversation topics that aren’t appropriate for the situation, being asked to overlook it for the sake of the plot isn’t enough, as it all feels quite ordinary. The same goes for the eventual investigation into his possession, as that also fits a lot of the general lead-ups and plot-building, which are just as generic and underwhelming, leaving this with a lacking final confrontation that is enough to bring this down.
Overview: ***.5/5
An enjoyable if overly formulaic genre effort, there’s enough to like here for what it is while still being brought down by a few flaws that keep this from being anything more. Those with an appreciation for this style or approach will have the most to like here while most others out there should heed caution with this one.
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