Fantasia ’15 Review: THE HALLOW

Canadian Premiere
Ireland, 2015
Directed by: Corin Hardy
Genre: Gaelic Gothic

Alright guys and ghouls, strap yourselves in. I’m gauging expectations here, so if we`re to bump occular uglies, I need you to understand that I’m not going to spend the night and there will be no cuddling after. Fantasia 2015 is in town and I’m buried, face deep. Late with reviews, late with screenings, early with heart palpitations. Let’s get right to it shall we?

Now, I don’t know what the topic de rigueur has been at your last family get together. Frankly, I don’t want to know. The creepy thing is that I’m pretty sure it involved 1) discussion regarding a recent mortgage refinancing that go-getter Frank was lucky to get, 2) that new health insurance product snagged by Bubbie, 3) teenage pregnancies perhaps?  or even 4) That strange smell coming from neighbor George.

One thing’s for certain though, I doubt anyone brought up the new wave of Irish horror films that’s been making festival circuit recently. We’re not talking about “pot of gold” leprechauns in space type stuff either. Over the last couple of years, we’ve seen challenging, intimate oeuvres that can best be described as “Gaelic Gothic”: dark, brooding tales of conflicting morality. These films have come to be held in high regard, dare I say…“Hallowed even”.

Part of this new wave is The Hallow (produced by Let Us Prey’s Brendan McCarthy), which had its Canadian premiere during the opening week of this year’s Fantasia International Film Festival. Set in a rural part of Ireland (aren’t they all), a young husband and wife pack up their things, throw their newborn in their car, and move into an old stone house in the middle of nowhere, after the conservationist father accepts a surveying gig for a local logging operation. An academic type, he studies specimens taken from the woods as part of his tree tagging exercises. You know, normal science stuff, like taking a goopy sample from a dead animal found in a mysterious lodge, all while having your newborn strapped to your back. That kind of stuff. What could go wrong?

In any event, the locals do not take kindly to his mucking around in the woods and warn him and his family of the potential dangers involved with disturbing the balance of such an ancient forest. Sure enough, something wicked comes. All over the place. The family must now fight for their lives to escape, or become part of the folklore that is presently out to get them.

Visually, the film actually reminds me of late night X-Files episodes that were set in the Pacific Northwest, and I don’t mean that in a bad way. Lush, green backdrops are contrasted frequently with moments of shadow and sheer darkness. Stories involving a presence that threatens home and family are dogma at this point so we are all in familiar territory. Which is fine since everyone at the screening I attended was there for the same thing: crazy creature effects! This movie is essentially a vehicle to show off the masterful technique that was used to bring whatever lurks in the woods to life. There`s a backstory, but you shouldn’t waste too much time with it. Religion? Force of Nature? A curse perhaps? I’ll leave that to the purists. For me, this film is enjoyable on the same level as so many other classics that came before it:   nasty baddies made of latex and rubber, wreaking havoc on a young family that was at the wrong place, at the wrong time.  My only problem was the time it took to get things going. The pacing has many starts and stops and the whole shebang could easily have wrapped up in less than an hour without missing a thing.  The problem with a film that runs too long is that it allows poor decisions to seep in. Character performances are great, but as they go from one bad decision to the next, spewing questionable dialog, you start to pull out from the experience (attention to new parents: the stupidity will fuck with you).

Despite being tedious at times, The Hallow is scary, atmospheric and will get you in that primal, reptilian way you so very much deserve. It’s too bad that what was sold to me as an “audience piece”, spent too much time in quiet contemplation.

A comfortable, Brothers Grimm type precautionary tale brought to life by fantastic creature effects, and stupid characters.

So long sunshine, I’m out!