The Night House is an American supernatural horror drama film directed by David Bruckner, based on an original screenplay by Ben Collins and Luke Piotrowski. The story concerns a widow who discovers a dark secret about the house her late husband built, which then leads her to a psychological battle which may cost her, her very life.
The main character of The Night House is Beth (Rebecca Hall), a school teacher who has just lost her husband Owen (Evan Jonigkeit) to suicide. Naturally, Beth is finding it very difficult to deal with Owen’s sudden death. Then, strange things begin to happen in the house – Beth experiences horrific dreams that involve a supernatural presence – is it the ghost of Owen? Beth attempts to get to the bottom of the unnatural phenomena while her best friend Claire (Sarah Goldberg) and neighbour Mel (Vondie Curtis-Hall) encourage her to simply move on.
Beth refuses to do so and ultimately is drawn into a downward spiral of ghastly truth that involves a supernatural force derived from a most unlikely source. In doing so, Beth has to confront a terrifying reality that was hidden from her by Owen that will turn her life upside down and inside out!
The Night House is for most part a one-woman tour-de-force from Rebecca Hall. As the traumatised Beth, her performance has to run the gamut of emotions – anger, jealousy, frustration, bitterness and fear. Hall is probably one of the main reasons to watch The Night House. While the plot might be convoluted in parts and not everything really adds up, it is left to Hall to function as the glue to keep the movie going.
There are moments where The Night House features the quality horror of Hereditary but sadly its third act does not come near, with a somewhat obtuse climax and ending that does not quite make any sense. Still in terms of mood, tone and atmosphere, The Night House is a recommended film for horror buffs.
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