Good horror is thin on the ground these days, a mate asked me to recommend a decent horror film to him and……..right, well first things first: There’s this teenage girl ( “The Guest”‘s Maika Monroe) that sleeps with this lad from her neighbourhood and shortly after, she’s chloroformed up and bundled off where the lad tells her she’s now sort of “Cursed” by this weird unstoppable, murderous force, disguised as anyone and the only way to rid herself of it is to pass it on…….through sex.
High on concept and low on budget, David Robert Mitchell’s latest has been divisive to say the least, a lot like last year’s “The Babbadook” , it gives out what you put in as a viewer. If you want a think piece on promiscuity…….it’s in there. If you want a John Carpenter/David Cronenberg aping coming of age horror…….in there as well.
One thing it definitely isn’t…is something we’re used to as modern audiences, bravely light on jump-scares and liberally chucking about symbolism. The beautifully dreamy and haunting score from “DisasterPeace” was the standout star for me the first viewing but upon second and third, the cinematography is what adds the extra layers of dread. With the knowledge that anybody could be a monster at any time (see! He knows what he’s doing.), everybody in the frame becomes the threat and is used as a tool to unsettle.
The Carpenter/Cronenberg vibes play strong throughout but the relentless dread of the threat has an air of the George A. Romero era zombies that continues to creep, crawl and slither under your skin like all good horror should.
I ended up recommending “VHS” to him, some people are beyond saving.
