This is an unusual horror film as it deals seriously, I thought, with the subject of mental health. The main character, Emma, has severe anxiety and suffers from panic attacks, all of which is intensified when she becomes the target of a demon called Cain who, it turns out, murdered her twin sister Sarah a year earlier. Her mental illness intensifies the film's suspense and increasingly frightening incidents. It reminded me of the film Copycat in which Sigourney Weaver as an agoraphobic becomes the target of a serial killer.
It's a low budget film but that doesn't stop it from being effectively eerie with several jumpy moments. I'm particularly haunted by the creepy eyes under the bed! Don't expect to see a Hollywood blockbuster with mind-blowing CGI effects, but it does have an effective scene in which Emma, Sam and another friend, Keeley, find themselves in a sort of fiery hell in which they are trapped by Cain.
On the whole the cast is very good, especially Jasmine Hodgson as Emma, and Michael Howard as her boyfriend Sam. Their relationship is a rollercoaster as they both struggle to deal with her mental health, her obsession with her dead twin and the supernatural happenings in their house.
The film has moments of humour, especially the girls-night-in scene in which Emma's best friend Keeley, played by Sarah Jane Gonzales, entertains her girlfriends with funny stories about her work as a nurse. A subtext suggests that there was once more to Emma's relationship with Keeley, and in fact it becomes clear that Keeley loves Emma. The film is also about bereavement, but it is ultimately uplifting in a final emotional scene, but not before Cain attempts to drag her down to whatever hell he came from.
2 out of 3 found this helpful.
Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink