It’s time for yet another haunted house flick. How many of these things are there? This time the ghosts aren’t so obvious, taking not the shape of gremlins or demons, but in the form of secrets and forbidden tales in this plain Jane drama, known also as Stranger in the House.
Recently wed, Eve is here to try and settle into her home, located in her partner’s hometown. Inspired by her new life and filled with hope for the future (not to mention treated as royalty in a massive fucking house), she must face the cracks that begin to appear in the facade, soon falling into a world of whispers and gossip, becoming ever more motivated to discover her husbands dark past.
This one has more than your average amount of polish. Snazzy set design, careful acting and a gently depressive score build a comfortable yet unsettling environment. Some of the performances and characters are not bad at all; Eve, protagonist, timid and warm housewife, contrasts impressively with her distant husband, the eccentric villagers, and most especially the chilly personality of her housemaid who mercilessly thwarts any kind of friendship she tries to build.
Initially the mystery is appreciatively convincing. The movie only drip-feeds its vital clues, encrypting its intentions, proving difficult to crack and makes for a worthwhile watch. At first. Sadly, through the use of pretentious overdramatics, sloppy writing and overloaded gimmicks, interest begins to wain rapidly towards the midpoint as the film soon exhausts its promises, and trust me, it really doesn’t get any better.
Toying with the suggestion of the paranormal rather than overtly creating any visible malice is a nice directive trick – the first one or two times. Soon it becomes a very overused and unwelcome cliché. And as the entire show reveals itself to become solely focused on only the decaying trust under Eve’s unravelling marriage, things only become more contrived and exhausting, as a series of multiple twists ruin what was to begin with a fairly tidy affair.
Overall this is a standard, safe, basic, normal, routine, generic watch. Slickly presented, dumb as dirt, nothing fantastic, not terrible, enjoyably watchable, mostly forgettable, a netflix-tier slice of solid pulp with an unknown adorable eye-candy protagonist which is sadly underused.
4/10
Possession Media 