Tricia's husband has been missing for seven years. Her younger sister Callie comes to live with her as the pressure mounts to finally declare him 'dead in absentia'. Tricia is reluctant, always holding out hope, but Callie is practical and wants her to move on. As Tricia sifts through the wreckage and tries to move on with her life, Callie finds herself drawn to an ominous tunnel near the house.
"There are fates worse than death."
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John Chard
10/18/2015
8 / 10
Three Billy Goats Gruff.
Written and directed by Mike Flanagan, Absentia finds Tricia (Courtney Bell) and Callie (Katie Parker) as two sisters who come to believe that the underpass nearby could be linked to the many disappearances in the area.
A slow burn indie horror is not everybody's idea of a good time, but Flanagan has crafted a smart atmospheric chiller, one with a nifty fairy tale fantasy bubbling away under the surface. Narratively it's low-key, though the air of grief and terror is palpable. The setting is a low rent area of Los Angeles, a place where the girls are told to always keep the doors locked, with the ominous underpass haunting the edges of every other frame.
Flanagan filters his story through the urban locale while populating it with characters who are haunted by something unseen, or by others who are troubled by personal issues (Tricia's husband disappeared 7 years ago and Callie is fighting a needle habit). The formula scares are kept to a minimum, Flanagan choosing to imbue the story with a sense of dread, toying with the sisters and us the viewers that there just may be something truly awful lurking just out of the eye line.
This is not a creature feature, like The Relic or Mimic, this is a different horror film to those. The horrors are born out of what you don't see, or what you barely glimpse, just like the classic horrors of yesteryear, with Flanagan cheekily dangling ambiguity into the bargain. It's unnerving and sad, creepy yet cunning, and a refreshing experience for those tired of big effects driven horror movies. If you like the slow burn less is more approach, with well written human drama in the bargain? Then give this a chance. 8/10
Pure filmmaking. Has the atmosphere that is by and large missing from the horror genre, opting for character development, tension, engagement and grounding rather than jump scares and gross-out gore effects. Still a horror movie, to be sure (and therefore not for everybody) but one that stands on its own.
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Final rating:★★★½ - I strongly recommend you make the time._
I watched this film without knowing it was actually directed by Mike Flanagan. When I saw his name in the beginning of the film, I immediately knew I was in for a treat! I was not wrong!
There is something special about the way he tries to scare people who watch his films. I can't tell you exactly what that is. All I know is that he is bloody good at it!
You could see the film had a limited budget but actually the fact that its budget was limited made the film even better. Its atmosphere was unique. The "jump scares" were not really a traditional jump scare but rather an amazing collection of moments where you wished you were so glued to the screen.
Would I watch it again? Definitely! Would I make my friends watch it? ASAP!
