RAW REVIEW: THE HOLE IN THE GROUND

It would appear that 2019 is all set to be the year of the spooky kid. With the much anticipated Brightburn and The Prodigy on the way, eerily blank-faced little boys are the genre’s must-have right now.

The first of this batch of films, Irish director Lee Cronin’s The Hole In The Ground is already gathering plenty of hype following a stellar reception at Sundance, and has even been called this year’s The Babadook by some critics.

So would I want to dive in? Or would I want to leave it long buried?

Read on...

THE HOLE IN THE GROUND (2019)

DIR: Lee Cronin

STARRING: Seana Kerslake, James Quinn Markey, Simone Kirby, Steve Wall, Eoin Macken, Sarah Hanly, James Cosmo, Kati Outinen

SPEEDY SYNOPSIS: I'll try not to spoil too much here but continue at your own risk.

The Hole In The Ground is the story of a strong but fragile single mother, Sarah (Kerslake) and her crumbling relationship with her odd son Christopher (Markey). 

Opening shortly after the pair moves into the creakiest creepiest house in all of rural Ireland, following an implied hellish ordeal at the hands of young Christopher's abusive father, the story really picks up steam after a trip into the nearby forest reveals a gargantuan sinkhole, while an ominous rant from the local crazy old lady with a tragic backstory of her own (Outinen) suggests all is not as it seems. 

Soon Christopher’s demeanour becomes all but unrecognisable, causing Sarah to wonder if the boy that returned from the woods is really her son...

THE BEST BITS (mild spoiler warning): First time feature director Cronin made waves with his acclaimed short Ghost Train (and eagle-eyed viewers may well spot a shout-out to that excellent piece of entertainment) and the scare-crafting skills on display there are evident in this movie too. 

At times genuinely unnerving, if the success of a horror flick is measured in scariness The Hole In The Ground absolutely delivers. It looks fantastic, and even the quieter moments drip with an all-pervading sense of dread.

Cronin’s eye for a shot really brings the film to life, turning the dank forest into a character all of its own, while it also boasts some impressive and understated effects during a couple of the more nightmarish moments.

The film is certainly buoyed by its sterling cast. The terrific Kerslake really is quite incredible, giving a rich and layered performance as Sarah. She manages to portray a woman n the edge without ever becoming annoying, and she also gets a chance to do something decidedly creepy late on in the movie that might just be the most chilling of all the scares in the film.

Markey is also brilliant in his big screen debut - at times sweet and cute, others unnerving and eerie. I fully expect to hear both mentioned during Awards season later this year.

As well as the two incredible leads, there are also stand-out turns from great character actors Outinen and Cosmo, who is as fantastic as ever - but if you see his name on a project I'm sure most of you know that is what you're getting.

These cast complement the story co-written by Cronin and Stephen Shields. They bring the well-written characters to life, while a deliberate but steady pace sees the fear ratchet up steadily as some skillfully worked set pieces provide regular jolts and aid in the telling of the story. 

Speaking of the plot, it also earns points for the way in which it takes a healthy dollop of folklore from the Emerald Isle as the basis of its frights. It's something I'd love to see even more of from now on.

THE WORST BITS (mild spoiler warning): While The Hole In The Ground is undoubtedly very good, I do feel it is a touch premature to be mentioning it in the same breath as modern classics such as the aforementioned The Babadook or Robert Eggers’ The VVitch. 

The Hole In The Ground isn’t quite as smart as Jessica Kent’s grief allegory, nor does it feel as groundbreaking in what it does as Eggers' 2015 period chiller.

It is a good story, but it is one you have probably heard before. Of course, in horror it isn't so much the story as how it is told that matters (just look at the hundreds of slasher movies from the Eighties as a case in point, then consider just how much the classics differ from Halloween's much celebrated template). 

Another small sticking point would be the ending of the film - obviously I cannot ruin that here, but it did feel as if it were going to offer up a nightmarish twist, that ultimately never came. I can't help but wonder how much more impact the movie might have had if it embraced the darkness of such a nihilistic conclusion. Still, what we do get is very enjoyable indeed, so perhaps I'd be better off appreciating what we do get.

THE VERDICT: As I said before, comparisons to The Babadook might serve to harm The Hole In The Ground in the long term. Sadly nothing can be done about hype once it has started to gather steam.

Perhaps this finely crafted little tale is better off compared with other recent offerings from across the Irish Sea, such as Corin Hardy’s The Hallow or Ivan Kavanagh’s The Canal - and it is arguably even better than those very good films.

The Hole In The Ground is an easy recommendation for those of you looking for a slick, sophisticated horror movie.

There’s no burying your head in the sand here - The Hole In The Ground establishes Cronin as a real talent to watch in the future - and as somebody who called this shot back when I reviewed Ghost train more than four years ago, I couldn't be happier to be right!

The Hole In The Ground is in cinemas from today - 1st March - by Vertigo Releasing.

Go check it out - and check out the film's official Facebook page here.

If you haven’t already, do please check out and Like the Hickey’s House of Horrors Facebook page, which you can find here. It gives you a nice quick link to any new posts on this blog. Alternatively, follow me on twitter: The House @HickeysHorrors

Until next time, I hope you enjoyed your stay.

RAW REVIEW: THE HALLOW

One of the most anticipated films to hit the festival circuit recently has been Corin Hardy's The Hallow. Known for his dark but intriguing visual flair (that is more than a little reminiscent of the great Guillermo del Toro) and long-standing appreciation of monster movies, The Hallow sees Hardy return to the folklore of his native Ireland. I was fortunate enough to catch the film at the recent FDA Showcase event in London.
So, is this a movie that can stand up to the serious weight of expectation upon its shoulders?
Read on...

THE HALLOW (2015)

Dir: Corin Hardy
Starring: Joseph Mawle, Bojana Novakovic, Michael McElhatton, Gary Lydon, Michael Smiley, Stuart Graham

SPEEDY SYNOPSIS: I'll try not to spoil too much here, but continue at your own risk.

As the growing economic crisis in Ireland forces the government to sell off swathes of its ancient woodland to the highest bidders, large companies move in, much to the chagrin of the local people.
London-based arborologist Adam (Mawle) is sent to check the woods before the deforestation crews can move in. With his young wife Clare (Novakovic) and their newborn son Finn in tow, Adam spends his days roaming out into the forest and exploring, documenting any and all flora and fauna that he comes across.
It is on one such excursion with Finn strapped to his chest and the family dog beside them that Adam discovers a curious black fungus growing deep in the woods. However, it soon becomes clear that the family have more pressing matters, not least the local hostility towards them, especially from their closest neighbour, Colm Donnelly (McElhatton). A simple farmer whose daughter disappeared in mysterious circumstances, Donnelly is quick to offer the pair strong warnings about disturbing whatever it is that lurks in the dark heart of the forest.
Adam is rather dismissive of the simple locals while the lonely Clare keeps herself busy by removing the clunky iron bars from the windows of their new (but very old) mill house home. But when an unexpected and frightening event late one night leaves the couple shaken, Adam finds himself on a collision course with an insidious threat. 
Are Donnelly and the locals doing their best to drive out the young family? Or is there something ancient and deadly lurking within the woods, waiting to strike?

THE BEST BITS (mild spoiler warning): As you might expect from the supremely talented Hardy, The Hallow looks incredible. Bringing the bleak but beautiful dark Irish landscape to life with exquisitely framed and shot camerawork, the film effortlessly transports the viewer into the world that it conjures. The deep greens of the woodland contrast with the cold grey skies, heightening the sense of isolation for the characters. They are shot in a way that makes them seem both beautiful and dangerous. It's certainly easy to see why the film was originally going to be titled The Woods.
What's more, Hardy and his cinematographer Martijn Van Broekhuizen make superb use of light and shade, especially during the climactic scenes and the numerous thrilling setpieces along the way. I cannot stress this enough, The Hallow is a real feast for the eyes.
Those aforementioned set-pieces are arguably the strongest parts of the film. The story (written by Hardy and Olga Barreneche) is rather slow moving, leading the viewer by the hand down several interesting and entirely viable cul-de-sacs before finally revealing the truth behind the film's various bumps in the night. As such the more thrilling scenes scattered throughout serve to keep the audience engaged, all while affording us some hints at what the true threat is.
From the scene in which Adam finds himself locked in his own car boot while unseen assailants terrify young Finn, to that where the whole family cower behind Adam's shotgun while a group of diabolical home-invaders ransack the mill house, these are excellently executed exercises in tension. As well as having a real talent for eye-catching visuals, Hardy can certainly wring a scene for every single drop of drama, plus there are a number of nice visual references to some classic horror movies that have gone before, showing that the director is a real fan and student of the genre. The 'scary' scenes more than manage to hit the spot and Hardy proves to be a skilled horror storyteller.
However, as impressive as the frights and the general look of the film are, the finest visual element is one that I don't really want to spoil here (even though plenty of other reviewers and even the poster are doing precisely that). Suffice it to say that the production design of a certain element introduced and shown in full late on in the film is absolutely fantastic. I do wish I could rave about The Hallows more here, but it's worth witnessing this superb work for yourself.
Of course a movie needs to do so much more than merely look pretty to truly captivate an audience. It's also necessary to give us some characters that can hold our interest and this is an area in which The Hallow's topnotch cast certainly helps the cause.
Mawle is extremely realistic in his portrayal of an idealist whose ongoing work can lead him to think that he is above the simple local folk and their customs. He's a well-educated Londoner and he sees the various references to Irish folklore and superstitions as silly attempts to get him to abandon his post. He isn't neglectful towards his family — in fact a couple of key scenes show that he is extremely protective of them — but his failure to assign a suitable level of importance to the grim warnings that come his way is a tragic character flaw. Mawle's character arc is compelling and events transpire that give him ample opportunity to show multiple facets to his character. It's very good work indeed.
Novakovic's Clare is the more sympathetic of the two leads. She's a new mother who has given up her friends and family to follow her husband's career. She is quicker to accept that there's something wrong in their seemingly idyllic home and she does a great job of portraying the fear that her character is feeling. Her character has a less pronounced arc than that of Adam, but she's still able to show some decent range throughout the film.

Elsewhere McElhatton impresses with his somewhat limited screentime as does the always excellent Smiley in what amounts to an interesting (if brief) cameo which delivers plenty of eerie foreshadowing. McElhatton is given a bit more to do, his down-to-earth, simple and deeply sad Donnelly serving as a nice foil to Mawle's more cultured, arguably pretentious and carefree character. 

One thing that I loved about the surprisingly straightforward storyline was the fact that it was prepared to not only take its time with its mysteries but to also steer clear of explaining each and every detail, granting it a little more mystique and encouraging the viewer to pay attention to get all of its intricacies. By refusing to give us a standard Hollywood exposition dump, Hardy and his crew utterly succeed in evoking the feel of the grim Gaelic fairy tales at its heart — and frightening us silly along the way.

THE WORST BITS (mild spoiler warning): As I stated before, The Hallow is a film that is prepared to take its time. Unfortunately, at times it may just be a little too slow for the less patient among you. This is not helped by the repetitive and cyclical nature of a large part of the film whereby the young family are terrorised by night by an unseen assailant, but hide without incident, and then the following day Adam travels into the local village where numerous unkempt locals glare at him knowingly.

This would perhaps be less of a problem if the characters to whom these encounters were happening gave us a little more to invest in, but all the leads are quite thinly sketched archetypes.

Clare is the isolated and lost new mother, Adam the doomed and superior sceptic, with very little more discernible personality. 

Horror has long thrived on using character tropes (in fact the doomed sceptical scholar is at the centre of some of the genre's finest literary works), but for us to truly sympathise with their plight our leads need to be at least a little bit likeable. Unfortunately the couple come across as a little too smug, a pair of Guardian-reading, middle-class, thirty-something, M&S/Gap shopping would-be hipsters. I understand that their assumed superiority is a large part of the moral behind the tale: for all their airs and graces, in the end it is they, not the supposedly less-educated locals, who are unprepared for the truth of The Hallows, but they veer dangerously close to irritating. Thankfully Hardy directs their plight in such a way that we do have to sympathise with them towards the end of the film, but it is certainly a little touch and go for a while.

Finally, on a more personal note, while I found the vast majority of the effects work absolutely fantastic, the rather daft and decidedly ropy CG depicting the black fungus as viewed through a microscope was disappointing. In a film filled with visual flair, this is the one image that stands out as an absolute clunker.

THE VERDICT: The Hallow is not a perfect film, but for a debut feature it is astonishing. It looks beautiful, boasts some amazing effects work and overcomes a couple of plot shortfalls by effortlessly drifting from sub-genre to sub-genre as it tells its tale, keeping the audience guessing even as they jump out of their seats at the numerous superbly executed scare sequences. 

A gorgeous but terrifying work, The Hallow proves that Corin Hardy is a name to watch out for in the years ahead.

The Hallow will be released in UK cinemas this Friday, 13th November.

For more information, why not check out the film's official Facebook page. Give it a Like while you're there too, I'm sure they'd appreciate it.

If you haven’t already, do please check out and like the Hickey’s House of Horrors Facebook page, which you can find here. It gives you a nice quick link to any new posts on this blog, plus regular news updates from around the web. I check the Internet so you don’t have to! Alternatively, follow me on twitter: The House@HickeysHorrors

Until next time, I hope you enjoyed your stay.