An isolated island community experiences supernatural events after the arrival of a mysterious priest.
Mike Flanagan offers a well produced product, great acting, nicely filmed but is derivative as they come; unless you’ve been under a rock, you’ve see it ten times or more. Yes, there’s well timed jump scares, solid effects (including make up and CGI), folklore and fake blood. Infuse some Midnight Mass (2003), From Dusk Till Dawn, Stephen King, especially Salem’s Lot, H.P Lovecraft’s The Shadow Over Innsmouth and James Herbert’s Shrine, throw in the setting of Dead and Buried to name a few and you’ve seen it already.
Performances are ripe, if a little underdeveloped given the run time. Familiar faces from The Haunting anthology Kate Seigel, Carla Gugino Henry Thomas, Rahul Kohli to name a few appear. Samantha Sloyan as Bev Keane is particularly notable. At times feels like a showcase of 60s/70s singer-songwriters, a Holy soundtrack of vivid montages including Neil Diamond. Flanagan toys with religious symbolism delivering a horror drama with social commentary, particularly where island politics are concerned. It’s all interesting but does not maketh the show. It unashamedly borrows throughout, even its ending echoes 30 Days of Night.
Overall, if you want more of the same old questions about faith, people struggling with their differing interpretations of life’s purpose, paced over seven episodes, indulge.
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