La Proie d'une ombre

Avec quelques réserves mineures, La Proie d’une ombre est tout simplement le meilleur film d’horreur que j’ai vu depuis des mois. Et je suis tout à fait prêt pour un second visionnage et une éventuelle augmentation de ma cote. Des films de fantômes comme ça, ça me va ! (16/11/2021)

Cette année, le discret Bruckner a éclipsé avec confiance le hitmaker James Wan. Et il s'annonce comme un nouveau maître de l'horreur psychologique, capable de guider même le spectateur le plus expérimenté à travers de nouveaux catacombes de mystère et de peur. En dévoilant les secrets au travers d'impasses dans lesquelles, en tant que spectateurs, nous n'avons jamais été auparavant connectés au personnage principale, soutenu par une chair de poule intense et des sursauts qui surviennent lorsque nous ne nous y attendons pas et que nous ne voulons peut-être même pas pour notre tranquillité d'esprit. Brillant. Et avec une transcendance métaphysique qui n'est pas hors sujet, mais qui trouve ses fondements dans le traumatisme d'une tragédie humaine aux questions sans réponse. (10/10/2021)

Rebecca Hall's convincing performance as the paranoid wife who, after her husband's death, searches the area and gradually discovers the mysterious circumstances of his suicide is about the only thing worth mentioning in this film. The trailer promised a full-blown, chilling and bleak horror film laced with proper gore, but the result is vastly different. Rather than a horror film, it's a drama about the inner feelings after losing a loved one and then coming to terms with reality, it successfully takes the horror genre in a roundabout way (unless you count the two sound jump-scares and the "boo" music) until the last 20 minutes, in which it tries very clumsily to incorporate a "demon" of sorts. An unconvincing half-drama, half-horror piece of crap that doesn't really know what it wants to be, and the result feels very awkward to the point of being uncertain. The trailer was clearly better than the film, and that's a very bad sign... (05/10/2021)

A serious psychological horror film for adults, children will be bored in the multiplexes. The Dark House stands on the excellent performance of Rebecca Hall, who really nails it, making us believe her overwhelmed character of a wife consumed by insecurity and fear. I also liked the nicely built mythology around the boogeyman (where he came from and what he did), it's just a pity that there are a few ambiguities associated with him (why he did it that way). Anyway, I expected a bit more intense scares from Bruckner (especially after the excellent Ritual). 7/10 (04/09/2021)

David Bruckner is a director I like a lot. With The Ritual he surprised everyone, and with Southbound he blew me away. I was looking forward to his upcoming horror film, but I didn't expect him to deliver it in such a Flanagan style! Rebecca Hall acts convincingly, but I wasn't really into her digging into the past and uncovering the truth. I was hoping for some kind of mindfuck with parallel worlds, a peek behind the curtain to the other side, and not an indirect rip-off of The Invisible Man, which is how it feels in places. It's pretty complicated and confusing and I'm not sure if it's quite fleshed-out. I didn't notice any jump-scares, and there’s certainly no gore, so it didn't work for me at all. I don't know how to rate this film, I didn't enjoy it enough to give it 3 stars, on the other hand 2 stars don't seem enough, and I like Bruckner so I'll stay on neutral ground. But I am not thrilled. Story 3/5, Action 1/5, Humor 0/5, Violence 0/5, Fun 3/5 Music 3/5, Visuals 4/5, Atmosphere 3/5, Suspense 2/5, Emotion 1/5, Actors 4/5. 5/10. (07/10/2021)