Director Veronika Franz, Severin Fiala
Genre Drama | Horror | Thriller
Cast Riley Keough, Jaeden Martell, Alicia Silverstone, Lia McHugh
Rating R
Release Date May 5th, 2020 (Hulu)
“A soon-to-be stepmom is snowed in with her fiancé’s two children at a remote holiday village. Just as relations begin to thaw between the trio, some strange and frightening events take place.”
From directors Veronika Franz and Severin Fiala who helmed the under-the-radar horror film Goodnight Mommy, The Lodge tells the story of a soon-to-be stepmom who is snowed in with her fiancé's two children at a remote holiday village. Just as relations begin to thaw between the trio, some strange and frightening events take place.
The Lodge has been on my radar for over a year after it made quite an impression at the Sundance Film Festival where it made its premiere on January 25th, 2019. As a self-proclaimed horror fanatic, I am always drawn to the indie horrors as they tend to be more raw and unfiltered compared to the major studio garbage we have been force fed as of late, including the barely watchable Rings, which was such a missed opportunity it still makes my stomach hurt.
Films like It Follows and Hereditary, to name a few, tend to hit the mark but rarely snag as much of the spotlight as they deserve. Hereditary was unique in the sense that it was able to reach a much larger audience than most indie horror films, which definitely benefited from a a few known names in the cast including Toni Collette and Alex Wolff. I also really enjoyed the very dark and twisted horror film Goodnight Mommy, which I am sure most of you have never seen or maybe even heard of. So now on to what matters, were my high expectations for The Lodge immature? Find out below.
I finally had the opportunity to watch the indie horror film The Lodge as it made its highly anticipated debut on Hulu, and all things considered I was impressed with it. I should probably start by pointing out the fact that I have an unusually high tolerance for horror (I have issues) so it takes some doing to really get under my skin - so as far as scare factor goes I would say The Lodge was just above middle of the road for me. I made it a point to turn off all of the lights and watch the movie solo as any true horror fan would, and even though I felt uneasy during pretty much the entire movie I never got the tingling chills feeling I was hoping for. Now that doesn’t necessarily take away from the effectiveness of The Lodge as a horror film, it just failed to deliver on certain elements - but all is not lost.
As far as horror films go The Lodge is still top-tier as it has fantastic cinematography, a chilling score, and most notably high quality acting lead by Jaeden Martell and Riley Keough. The setting of an isolated cabin was perfect, and you’d be hard pressed to find anything optimistic about the film as the tone is pretty much set very early on. I really enjoyed the feel of unease and the shots focusing on seemingly random corners of a room causing the viewer to sit and wait to see if something was going to happen. I found myself wondering if I missed something quite a few times which to me speaks to the quality of camera work as it provided more questions than answers.
The script taps into the necessary horror elements combining real-life with something more sinister, and for me that is always the best way to make sure a horror film resonates with viewers. I do feel that the pacing of the film was a little slow but the payoff is well worth it, leaving you with the classic “did that really just happen” look on your face just as the credits begin to roll.
The Lodge blends horror elements from classics like The Shining and newer films like Hereditary, going the route of dark and ominous leaving humor out altogether making for a unique viewing experience. I will say that my expectations were probably unreasonably high for The Lodge, and although it wasn’t quite everything I was hoping it would be, it is still a damn good horror movie that I would be happy to check out again. Recommended.
The Lodge is now streaming on Hulu - check out an exclusive preview and the latest trailers here.
