Posts Tagged ‘Suzanne Clément’

THE CHILD REMAINS: 3 STARS. “will send a chill up the spines of horror fans.”

The story of the Butterbox Babies resides in one of the darkest chapters of Canadian history. From 1928 to 1945 a home for unwed mothers on the South Shore of Nova Scotia sold and otherwise disposed of babies, allegedly burying the unwanted tots in “butter boxes” or wooden crates from the local grocery. The dastardly goings-on at the Ideal Maternity Home lie at the heart of a spooky new film from East Coast filmmaker Michael Melski.

The film sets the scene with a flashback to the horrible heyday of the Mersey Home for the Unwed. A young mother and her baby are separated and disposed of by the vicious proprietors of the home.

Cut to decades later. The house of horrors is now a charming country inn run by Monica (Shelley Thompson), the stern but welcoming owner. Checking in are journalist Rae (Suzanne Clément) and musician Liam (Alan Hawco), a husband and wife looking forward to celebrating her birthday. Immediately the pregnant Rae is uneasy, plagued by unsettling visions of a woman’s ghostly figure and a bloody door. Liam writes off the apparitions as PTSD, related to some of the hard-hitting work Rae does as a crime reporter. As spooky stuff continues to happen Rae’s curiosity kicks in. She begins an investigation that lead to places she could never have imagined in her wildest nightmares.

“The Child Remains” is a slow burn horror film that values atmosphere over action. Director Melski massages the gothic horror elements of the story, allowing the tension to build as the characters are subjected to mounting dread.

Aiding Melski are some nice genre performances from Thompson and Géza Kovács as henchman Talbot. As Monica, Thompson rides the line between matronly and malevolent while Kovács has a face made for genre movies.

Hawco and Clément create a believable family unit whose relationship drives the plot. As the going gets weird—and it does take a shift toward 1980s slasher conventions near the end—it is crucial the audience want the best for them, and we do.

“The Child Remains” takes an interesting approach to the psychodrama story. Blending genres to create a tale it requires more suspension of disbelief near the climax than I would have liked but nonetheless should send a chill up the spines of horror fans.

THE OTHER HALF: 4 STARS. “never takes the easy way out & neither do the actors.”

“The Other Half, starring Tom Cullen and Tatiana Maslany, is an uncompromising and intense look at mental illness.

Cullen (“Downton Abbey’s” Anthony Gillingham) is Nickie, a short-tempered waiter shown the restaurant’s door when he has a run in with a customer. Coming to his defense is aspiring painter Emily (Maslany), an outgoing young woman suffering from bipolar disease. The pair begin a relationship, sharing a deeply felt connection that weathers Nickie’s sudden rages and Emily’s descent into depression. When her condition spirals out of control her father Jacob (Henry Czerny), fearing for her safety opts to institutionalize his daughter. Months later the couple reunite, moving in together but old problems arise.

Director Joey Klein straightforwardly but sensitively portrays the couple’s travails with a combination of clever photography, sound design and careful scripting. Nickie’s alienation is brought to life with dreamlike audio and disorienting visual cues. Maslany brings a kinetic energy to Emily’s troubled state, emphasizing the self-destructive urges that rule her behaviour.

Both leads hand in remarkable performances. Maslany is external, physical in her work, Cullen all brooding and internal. Together they click, creating the emotional core of the film as they struggle to find a way to be together. “The Other Half” is a movie that never takes the easy way out and neither do the actors.