A Dark Song

A Dark Song.jpg

Following the murder of her only child, a depressed mother goes against God to perform a dark ritual in hopes of speaking to her child one more time.

Filmed in Ireland, but set in Wales, A Dark Song is a thriller that displays the tiresome, tedious task of preparing and cleansing the body in order to summon the unknown. The task requires months of waiting, with perfect precision and specific reason for calling upon the unknown.

The woman and her occultist leader are kept locked away in a large house hidden away in the depths of Wales, where they cannot leave once the house has been sealed; if one of them breaks the seal, there are to be dire consequences.

Its narrative follows both the angst of impatience, and the claustrophobia of being kept in a dark house with a person you despise.

A Dark Song uses cinematography and music to maintain its unsettling feeling, and it perfectly fits the setting of preparation for a dark ritual aimed to conjure powerful and evil spirits with the intent of going against God. Even when very little is happening, the shots and music go hand-in-hand to give the viewer a constant feeling of fear and darkness.

The film doesn't particularly contain the jump scares and terrifying moments you'd expect; it instead feels like arthouse has had a child with horror, and A Dark Song is its child.

A Dark Song.jpg

If you’re looking for a unique horror movie, this is the movie for you.

I watched a lot of horror movies. A lot. And the ending of this movie surprised me. If you watch a lot of horror movies as well, you know it’s enough to warrant a recommendation.

In this movie, Sophia, played by Catherine Walker, hires Joseph Solomon, played by Steve Oram, to perform a ritual. The ritual is performed in a secluded house for an extended period of time. All because Sophia wants to hear her son’s voice again. If you’ve seen enough horror movies, you know that a ritual and a secluded house are a recipe for a disaster.

Both main characters are unlikable. You think that you would feel more sympathy for a woman who lost her child, but this movie makes it difficult. Which is refreshing in its own way. Solomon is just a typical tyrant.

This movie has a very very slow pace. If you like horror movies in which things start to happen really fast, this is not the movie for you. This movie takes its time building tension. So when things start to happen, you really feel it.

It also has some very unexpected lines of dialogue. Things that you think of while watching horror movies, but hearing them being said without breaking the fourth wall is just disturbing. But generally, this movie doesn’t have a lot of dialogue at all.

Also, this movie has amazing landscapes. I know it’s unusual for a horror movie, but this movie was filmed in Ireland. If you’ve never visited there, I highly recommend that you do. It’s just beautiful. The camera work is pretty good for a horror movie.

I must say, the ending really surprised me. I did not see it coming. The movie seems so intent on going in one direction, and taking in such a sharp turn was unique indeed. Horror movies with a message are also not a common thing as well, but this movie decided to go there. Whether you agree with this message will affect how you view this movie at the end.

This movie is directed and written by Liam Gavin.

It’s an Irish horror movie. Which helps me solidify my opinion that my favorite horror movies are not American horror movies.

This movie is available on streaming.

Movie poster taken from IMDB

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