The Awakening (2011)

For the past decade, we have seen a revival of the classic haunted house chiller with works such as the Nicole Kidman-starred The Others to the brilliant Spanish scares of The Devil’s Backbone and The Orphanage.  With the current and relentless focus on remakes and torture porn, it is great that this old-fashioned sense of horror is still alive and well. With the release of The Human Centipede 2 (Full Sequence) which is apparently failing at the box office, is The Awakening an antidote of sorts?

In 1921, Florence Cathcart (Rebecca Hall) is a Hoax exposer and apparent hunter of ghosts, of which she has encountered none. When she is approached by a man (Dominic West) who says that the boarding school he works at is haunted by a child ghost, she decides to investigate the “paranormal activity” that’s terrorising the young students. However, within the interiors of this school, Florence begins to witness the fear.

From the above synopsis you have just read, you will get the sense of what kind of horror film The Awakening is, as it is a traditional ghost story you expect from the 1960s. If you have a particular knowledge towards this genre, you ought to know the mechanics of where the story goes, but that’s not to say you can’t learn new tricks of the hat.

The character of Florence brings a level of interest towards the film, such as that she is a well-educated woman living through the tragicness of a post-WWI England. Establishing herself as a self-confident woman in the beginning, she deteriorates and we see her damaged past during her time in the school. In this role, Rebecca Hall is central to what makes the film work as we truly believe she is facing this horror and looks genuinely terrified.

As for the supporting players, The Wire‘s Dominic West is your typical male interest which may look like he is something under the skin, but you realise it’s not much. On the other hand, Imelda Staunton (who was scary as Dolores Umbridge in Harry Potter) plays the classic horror nurse who doesn’t say much but just her presence alone is chilling.

With its Gothic influence, the way Nick Murphy directs the horror is one of atmosphere as set-pieces are beautifully lit by cinematographer Eduard Grau, with both light and dark. Sadly, what Murphy’s film fails at is the jump factor in which something pops up that becomes very formulaic. As with most of these ghost stories, the climax is quite baffling and an attempt to emotionally connect with the protagonist, which feels contrived. The only thing an audience would say at the end of the film: “eh?”

With strong performances and an intriguing Gothic atmosphere, the film sadly lacks in scares and the ending is somewhat confusing. Not even Rebecca Hall or Dominic West in a bathtub can save the film.

DIRECTOR: NICK MURPHY
SCREENWRITERS: STEPHEN VOLK, NICK MURPHY
STARRING: REBECCA HALL, DOMINIC WEST, IMELDA STAUNTON
COUNTRY: UK
RUNTIME: 107 MINS

Film Rating:

Popularity: 1%