Cast: Ed Stoppard, Sophia Myles, Isaac Andrews
Director: Adam Wimpenny
Country: UK
Genre: Thriller
Editor’s Notes: The following review is part of our coverage of the BFI London Film Festival. For more information on the festival visit http://www.bfi.org.uk/lff and follow the event on Twitter at @bfi.
Helmed by a relatively unknown Adam Wimpenny, Blackwood received its world premiere at the London Film Festival 2013 as part of the ‘cult’ collection of films also screening at the festival. Described as “reinventing the English ghost story” by the British Film Institute, Blackwood is a minimalistic British thriller nuanced with the chilling presence of an old-fashioned horror picture. Despite the absence of any deviation from the regular formula, the film still amounts to more than a pile of cheap scares through thoughtful storytelling and impressive cinematography despite a somewhat flawed script.
Every aspect of Blackwood oozes the context of a classic horror story, very nearly bordering on the gothic with dashes of a psychological horror. Such tension is the film’s most enjoyable aspect and brings with it a level of unpredictability to keep the film fresh at every turn.
University lecturer Ben Marshall (Ed Stoppard), after recovering from a traumatic mental breakdown, relocates to the English countryside with his wife Rachel (Sophia Myles) and young son Harry. Hoping for a fresh start, he begins his new job at a nearby university whilst his wife and son settle into their new family home: Blackwood. But just as Ben starts to feel that things are going his way, he begins to witness strange occurrences in the house that he can’t explain. These happenings are apparently unbeknownst to his wife and son and in his solitary paranoia, a deep obsession to track down and end whatever is causing these spectral visions incurs.
Wimpenny is clearly a connoisseur of scene setting; the mise en scene of Blackwood is masterfully crafted through minimalistic lighting, under-reliance on special effects and a dull color palette. The bleak and pale landscapes that lack the bright vibrancy associated with positivity and happiness also create atmosphere and a sense of foreboding; from the offset, all of the signs point to the probability and likely inevitability of something going wrong. He also creates the atmosphere perfectly through his use of generic horror devices: a large and mysterious old house, a large and uninviting forest and use of pathetic fallacy to reflect the predicament of the family in question. Every aspect of Blackwood oozes the context of a classic horror story, very nearly bordering on the gothic with dashes of a psychological horror. Such tension is the film’s most enjoyable aspect and brings with it a level of unpredictability to keep the film fresh at every turn.
Traces of recent horror offerings, such as You’re Next, Sinister and Insidious can be derived from the screenplay of Blackwood, plaguing it with the unshakeable stench of unoriginality. A promising film alas falls into the evil clutches of repetition; aside from the truly gripping final ten minutes, Blackwood hardly confronts what hasn’t been addressed countless times before in horror films.
Despite the film’s clearly successful atmospheric flair, such artful direction and meticulous scene setting is let down by a script overwhelmed with abominable clichés and generic formulas. Traces of recent horror offerings, such as You’re Next, Sinister and Insidious can be derived from the screenplay of Blackwood, plaguing it with the unshakeable stench of unoriginality. A promising film alas falls into the evil clutches of repetition; aside from the truly gripping final ten minutes, Blackwood hardly confronts what hasn’t been addressed countless times before in horror films. The audience isn’t treated to anything new and exciting despite a script that attempts just that. In its botched attempt and subsequent failure, Blackwood often becomes unnecessarily complex; plot points for the most part remain under explained or left with no explanation at all, a frustrating dynamic recurrently present in the film. Furthermore, the storyline eventually begins to border on the absurd and totally implausible towards the film’s conclusion with, it seems, writers endeavoring to throw in every possible shock element merely for the sake of it. This results in the conclusion of Blackwood having a rather rushed and abrupt atmosphere to it, leaving the audience somewhat dissatisfied and confused concerning the outcome.
All in all, Blackwood is far from a poor British horror film. In fact, it’s a fine and enjoyable watch for any horror fan but is immediately forgettable. Aside from the masterful setting of scene and the standout performances, from Russell Tovey and Sophia Myles for example, Blackwood fails to be an innovative and inventive horror film, opting for the accumulation of horrific traits from a number of other films in the genre. Because of this, the film is presented as a homage to the elements and ingredients often seen in a horror film, as opposed to a credible horror film itself. Enjoyable, occasionally thrilling and instantly forgettable, Blackwood can briefly satisfy a sudden craving for a genre without leaving any lasting impression in its wake.
[notification type=”star”]57/100 ~ MEDIOCRE. Enjoyable, occasionally thrilling and instantly forgettable, Blackwood can briefly satisfy a sudden craving for a genre without leaving any lasting impression in its wake. [/notification]
