Terror strikes when a former soldier takes a job to help a young woman and her housebound mother.
Director: Romola Garai
Cast: Dan Carla Juri, Imelda Staunton, Alec Secarean, Angeliki Papoulia
Release Date: July 24, 2020
Genres: Horror
Rated R for some strong violence, bloody images, a sexual assault, and
brief language and nudity
Runtime: 1h 39min
Review:
Amulet, Romola Garai directorial debut, is a bit of a throwback to 70s
style horror films like Rosemary’s Baby or Suspuria. There is an incredibly slow build in this
visually aggressive film which makes you think you are watching one type of
film before it turns into something much different and far stranger than you
think. Garai displays some impressive
talent behind the camera but people expecting shocks and bloody thrills may
check out before the film reaches its crescendo. The first two thirds of the film feels like a
slow burn prestige drama which is fairly engaging because of two fairly strong
performances from the leads. Carla Juri
& Alec Secarean both create fully formed characters with each leaving a
lasting impression especially once the film’s bag of tricks is fully
unleashed. Imelda Staunton has a small
role but her appearances do enough to leave you unsettled. While the film does a lot right it’s not a
perfect film with its snail’s pace being the most glaring issue. Garai is definitely going for a more artful
approach but at times she does boarder on self indulgent with shots or
sequences which leaves the film feeling much longer than its actual
runtime. Still it’s hard not to be
impressed with the film as a whole especially during its nutty finale.
B
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