The Lodgers

We make some great films in this country but Irish horror films don't really have the best track record. For every Byzantium we have a Rawhead Rex and an Isolation. For every Grabbers we have Shrooms and (sweet jesus this one is bad) Boy Eats Girl. The goodness of A Dark Song is tempered by the memories of High Spirits and Stitches. Things are looking up however with the arrival of Brian O'Malleys 'The Lodgers'. This is one that can go in the good column.

The year is 1920. A pair of twins called Rachel and Edward live an odd existence in a decrepit old mansion in the Irish countryside. Strange supernatural forces tie them to the house and to each other. When Sean, an injured World War I veteran returns home, him and Rachel are drawn to each other which causes problems for both of them.

I really liked this but it's a film that's going to struggle to find an audience I think. It's languid (and at times glacial) pace makes it a tough watch in places and it's easy to find your attention wandering at times. But if you are willing to stick with it you'll be rewarded with a richly atmospheric story and visuals that will genuinely chill you. One sub aquatic image from the climax of the film will feature heavily in my dreams tonight I fear. One thing I really appreciated about it was the fact that it stays old fashioned in its scares and lets them build organically instead of the usual modern horror movie business of chucking jump scares and loud noises at the screen every five minutes. The setting of the film helps. It was filmed in the notorious Loftus Hall in Co. Wexford which is supposedly Ireland's most haunted house. Just knowing this lends the film a veneer of creepy authenticity.

Written by David Turpin and directed by Brian O'Malley, it's a lovely looking if slightly derivative film that wears it's influences a bit too much on its sleeve. Seasoned horror fans will notice nods to The Innocents and The Others and more modern influences like Let's Scare Jessica To Death, Crimson Peak, Under The Skin and especially Japanese horrors like Ringu when we arrive at the overblown finale of the film. But I suppose if you are going to homage something it's never a bad idea to cherrypick from the best and these moments will unnerve you and creep you out and any horror film that can do that is doing its job properly. Scares aside it also looks at social themes of the day like the way Irish people who fought in World War I were treated. 100 years later this is still a topic causing heated debate and it's good to see it acknowledged.

Horror needs a solid cast to sell the scares and we get a fine one here. Charlotte Vega as Rachel is a great lead and really sells her character and her bizarre relationship with her brother who's played well by Bill Milner. Ireland's own Deirdre O'Kane & Moe Dunford especially offer fine support with Dunford's character Dessie playing a bitter and bigoted character who's as nasty as any supernatural entity. I've never seen this side of him before but I hope we get to see more of it in the future. As with a lot of films made here I do wonder why the leads can't be given to Irish performers though. There's enough talent on this little Island to fill a thousand films and it's not like Vega and Milner are well known names who will bring in an audience. It's an annoyance but it doesn't take away from the quality of their performances.

This is definitely worth a watch. It's a well made and well crafted chiller that will get under your skin and one that doesn't have to rely on blood and guts and loud noises to get it's job done. That's always a welcome thing.