After losing one of their twins in a tragic accident, a family of three relocates to Finland only to face a devastating reality.
Great ending, but somewhat lost on its way there. Let me start with a major concern because, overall, it’s a worth-watching horror with a great lead. The death of the kid (inciting incident) is discounted. This is by far the worst tragedy a family can face, and it happens straight away, and you don’t get to see a thing. There are visual manipulations that could manipulate the event and still make you feel lost for words. If you had visually experienced something, Rachel’s (Teresa Palmer) reaction would have shuttered you, and the rest of the family’s reactions would have affected you more. It just happens too fast, too soon. Having said that, let’s move on.
Understandably, Elliot’s behaviour becomes the thriller’s epicentre and the basic suspicion that something is fundamentally wrong. Due to preexisting knowledge, you know what has happened (or not); you just don’t know how it happened and, consequently, how it can be reversed. Revealing the “true” reason behind it is the first twist, which will add flavour to the narrative and make you want to see where this is going. The convolution of the second one, though, will make you question what you already know or you think you know, and when it all comes to full circle, it’ll be up to you to decide whether it all made sense or not and if it was what you thought it was. If you ask me, the drama prevails while the horror fails.
After everything was said and done, I expected more of a European school of filmmaking from director Taneli Mustonen and not Hollywood. Representative examples of my expectations would be The Hole in the Ground (2019) and The Innocents (2021). Pay attention to Daniel Lindholm’s photography; it’s thrilling! Furthermore, loads of credits go to Teresa Palmer, who deserves attention she has not received. Again, if you want to see her in something more realistic and European, I’d recommend Berlin Syndrome (2017). She’s brilliant!
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