Malevolent… a little life added to a common plot idea by the performances in the film.
Shortly before Florence Pugh became a big name, she did this horror film that more or less went straight to Netflix. It’s kind of amusing that, while it’s a UK production, Pugh is still playing an American (which she does very well, as anyone who’s ever been surprised by her natural accent in an interview knows).
In this particular case, she’s one half of a brother and sister team of scammers who’ve come to Scotland to spin make some cash by ridding people’s homes of ghosts. They are not particularly sympathetic characters right off the top.
The plot, overall, is a variation on your typical ghost story. So there are aspects of trauma, guilt, unfinished business, and comeuppance. Those things are a little all over the place, due to the setup and characters involved.
That leads to things feeling a little unfocused and then oddly focused as the climax hits and spills into the denouement.
Really, there are a handful of things that keeps this movie from being really good.
While the story idea is good, the writing is uneven and more than a little clunky in places. The characters are generally well done–and definitely well performed–but the key twist characters really don’t track as well as they should. And while there are some neat shots in the film, most of the camera work is just… standard.
Ostensibly, this film is set in the 80s… but that’s a little difficult to tell. Sure the equipment they use in their ghost hunting is a bit old looking, as are the cars, but so many other things look and feel very contemporary. Being set in rural Scotland doesn’t help, either, as that’s not exactly a location that’s a bastion of 80s cultural expression for most audiences.
One thing the film does manage to do which is pretty impressive is make the Little Nash Rambler Song (Beep Beep) more than a bit creepy and ominous. Without distorting it or doing a cover of it. Granted, they lose points for there not really being any meaning for that song to even come up in the context it does… but that’s another bit of the writing failure.
On an interesting note, the actor who plays one of the supporting characters is also a producer behind a whole slew of low-budget horror films… including the surprisingly successful Blood and Honey horror take on Winnie the Pooh.
Above all, though, it’s Pugh who holds this film together… and the main reason you may want to check out this slightly above average horror film.
- Malevolent – October 14, 2024
- Demons 2 – October 14, 2024
- Immaculate – October 12, 2024
Leave a Reply