This week in the crypt we take a look at the new Shudder Original film, THE BANISHING.
You can catch THE BANISHING beginning on April 15th on Shudder.
In this 96 minute romp directed by Christopher Smith (Severance, Triangle) viewers are treated to a tale that has somewhat of a gothic Hammer horror feel to it.
THE BANISHING follows the tale of a young reverend, his wife, and daughter as they move into a house with a horrifying secret.
Labeled as telling the “true story” of the most haunted house in England, viewers are treated to a slow burn that mixes horror with family drama.
The first few minutes of the film set the tone leaving viewers to wonder what’s real and what’s not. Filled with a few what the fuck moments, the films does crawl at times which is why this is a brief review….we don’t want to spoil anything.
What worked for me was the cast. It was a well cast film and they made the characters believable which helps the immersive setting of the film. It was well lit and the fx were well done. It was well shot. Mixing elements of occult, psychological time jumps, and standard supernatural make this a film you need to pay attention to as the disjointed parts can make it easy to miss something.
Where it fell short for me was at times it seemed to crawl and had a been there done that feel. While the pacing might be an issue for some this does bring the rewatchability quality into question. It should find an audience among fans of paranormal films.
Adam Holtzapfel is the face behind Reviews From The Crypt and Interviews From The Crypt. Growing up in the 80s on a steady diet of VHS horror, he has maintained a love of the genre since. Loving almost everything from the good, the bad, and the weird he now searches the deepest realm of the Roku to press play on any film he hasn’t watched a million times.