BAFTA Short Review: The Blue Door

6th February 2019

When thinking of a short horror film, one might imagine the directors cramming as many in-your-face scares as possible into what little time they have. However, the most haunting stuff of all is the dread that slowly but surely creeps up on you, the tension that mounts until you’re gripping the edge of your seat, and then finally erupts into a spine-chilling finale. Ben Clark and Meghan Pugh’s ‘The Blue Door’ does just that. It is understated, simple, and downright terrifying. This horror short contains no dialogue whatsoever, and reminds us of what a good chiller is all about. It doesn’t rely on anything but its exceptionally unnerving atmosphere and blood curdling simplicity.

Game of Thrones star Gemma Whelan stars a home care nurse who has recently been assigned to a new patient. Arriving at the house, she sees that this elderly woman has been neglected and living in squalor. She starts looking around, cleaning up, and begins to get the sense that there is something darker dwelling in the home.

The film is beautiful and bleak, the dull, cold colours of the house, which is dilapidated and derelict, add to the icy, eerie atmosphere that is tantamount to the underlying terror of this film. Every time the camera moves with Whelan, you expect to see something lurking in the corner of the room, and even when you don’t, that expectant fear is what the most terrifying horrors are all about… that sense of something lurking, hiding, unseen, waiting to pounce.

Using a completely recyclable set, the crew have created the perfect backdrop to the story, with white sheets covering the furniture and dripping taps, all the elements of a deliciously unnerving film. If you’re a horror fan, this will not disappoint. It trades blood and guts for atmosphere and toe curling tension that hits you right where it should, building up to an ending that will have you glued to the spot long after the credits roll.

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