The Night House (Psychological Horror /2020 /Disney Hotstar)
The story revolves around a woman coping with the aftermath of her husband’s suicide.
Writers- Ben Collins & Luke Piotrowski
Director- David Bruckner
Cast – Rebecca Hall, Sarah Goldberg, Vondie Curtis Hall
Plot
Beth’s perfect life comes to an abrupt end when her loving husband commits suicide leaving a cryptic message and loads of secrets.
Reeling under emotional trauma, she starts feeling his presence. When she starts digging into his life that she never knew of, startling facts tumble out.
Analysis
The moment you enter the story as an audience, there are two aspects which immediately impress you – Fantastic setting ,and a very emotional premise.
The beautiful lonely cottage on the water front in a picturesque suburb provides for an excellent location.
(Though it also makes me laud the characters for being unnecessarily brave for living in the middle of almost no-where and upright for refusing friends’ help to tackle loneliness )
Rebecca Hall’s superb performance as the wife struggling to come to terms with the tragic turn in her life, is absolutely overwhelming.
Her heart felt portrayal not only adorns the entire film like a highlight but also keeps you emotionally involved .
It also continually keeps us in doubt if what she feels is real or just a manifestation of her pain.
The film , though had ample opportunity, refuses to tow the treaded path of typical jump scares or horror tropes.
Despite that, during the entire proceedings, whether during day or night , there is an air of uncertainty and creepiness hanging all the time. That tingling feeling of uncertainty and fear is what makes this horror such a delight.
There are also the mysterious secrets of his past life that keep tumbling out and you are trying to place them like a puzzle. The intrigue they add is absolutely thrilling.
Quite a many times throughout, you doubt whether you are watching a supernatural horror or a psychological horror. The climax hovers between the two.
Being a horror buff ,I reconcile with the fact that rarely do you find a horror climax that is conclusive as well satisfactory.
This one leaves you pondering a bit , but I think it panned out perfectly well.
A delightful horror sounds such a paradox but that is how I felt about it.
A must watch for horror fans.