BEFORE: As I said yesterday, it's New York Comic Con week, which means that my stress dreams are back, right on schedule. And they're being made worse by horror movies, so I've got that going for me. The Con will be over by Sunday, then I'll just have regular real-life stresses to deal with, plus of course horror movies. I've built up some form of resistance over the years, I think, because it takes a REALLY scary film to give me nightmares, something on the level of "It: Chapter Two" - "Salem's Lot" from 1979 just isn't going to affect me the same way.
As far as linking goes, I was sort of forced over the last year to become an expert on the filmographies of the "New Mutants" cast, because it had to be re-scheduled again and again - so I have to be on the lookout for other films in this genre that will help me get where I need to go. That led me to "The Witch", which led me to "Filth" and that also led me to discover "Marrowbone", with both Anya Taylor-Joy AND Charlie Heaton carrying over. A double link gets my attention, for sure.
"Don't Let Go" links to one other horror film this year, but it also links to TWO horror films being saved for next year, and that gets my attention, too. It's got potential to get me out of a jam in 2022, and also gives me an opportunity to program "The Purge" and its sequels next October. I'm not completely sold on that idea, but I want to at least have the option.
THE PLOT: A young man and his three younger siblings, who have kept the death of their beloved mother secret in order to remain together, are plagued by a sinister presence in the sprawling manor in which they live.
AFTER: This one's all about the real estate - but isn't it ALWAYS about the real estate? Especially in horror movies, there's always a spooky house, no matter where you go, right? "Salem's Lot" had a spooky house in Maine, "The Witch" was set in spooky log cabins in colonial New England, and even "The New Mutants" was set in a very spooky medical institution (filmed in Medfield, MA, so this October has been very New England-oriented).
OK, maybe I'm over-simplifying things. But the fear is always there, if you're a homeowner - somebody's going to break into your house, somebody's going to burn down your house, some Korean family's going to pretend to be servants in your house, you know what I'm saying, right? Actually this one does evoke some other memories of "Parasite", which was a horror movie in its own Korean way, though I never would have been able to link to that in October - January 1 was clearly where that film belonged, the proof is in the linking pudding, since I'm 5/6 of my way to another Perfect Year. But jeez, was that THIS year when I watched "Parasite", it feels like five years ago - nope, that was 2021, an appropriate film to kick off the second calendar year of pandemic lockdown, perhaps. Is it safe to leave the house yet??
"Marrowbone", on the other hand, is set for some reason around 1969 - there's footage on TV of the moon landing, and other cultural references like the Beach Boys song "Wouldn't It Be Nice", If not for that, this could have been set in the late 1800's, or the 1930's, because technology's not really that important, and the giant house sort of evokes those old spooky Victorian mansions, although it also retains the qualities of a quaint farmhouse in Maine, which I guess it is. Seventeen bedrooms that you won't use, giant staircases, way too many mirrors and several coat-stands that you're bound to mistake for a person standing in the next room. Plenty of storage space in the attic, but we'll get to that in a bit - and surprisingly, no spooky basement with poor lighting. Sure, it's been abandoned for decades, but it's only a few miles to the nearest town - a little bit of dusting and it's ready for moving in, game nights playing Risk in the parlor, outdoor entertaining space and a large yard so you can see enemies approaching from the forest. Wait, what?
Let's back up a bit - Rose Fairbairn moves her four children (three teenagers and a younger son) from England to her childhood home in rural Maine, and while their past isn't detailed at this point, you get the feeling that they're escaping from a very bad situation - you know, HIM. Rose makes a big deal out of leaving the bad nastiness of the past behind, making a fresh start in the U.S., and changing their last name to Marrowbone. Because that's a common name that won't raise suspicion at all. Things go well for a while, and a teen girl who lives nearby becomes part of the family and a potential love interest for Jack, the oldest child. They go on hikes, beach trips, picnics and such, and life is great in Maine for the group until their mother gets sick.
Rose's dying wish is to keep the family together, and that means keeping her death secret until Jack turns 21 - otherwise child services would get involved and split the family up, maybe this is one reason why the film is set in 1969. Back in the Depression era, the government maybe didn't care if teenagers raised their younger siblings? Anyway, maintaining this illusion means the family has to live in a form of lockdown, no strangers in the house, not even attractive neighbors who are love interests for Jack. This sets up a love triangle between Jack, Allie, and Tom Porter, the town lawyer who needs Mrs. Marrowbone's signature on the paperwork that would transfer ownership of the house to her soon-to-be adult son. Yeah, that might be a problem, I mean they could dig her up but she still might not be able to sign the papers.
This would be the absolute WORST time for the person the family's been running from to show up, wouldn't it? So naturally that happens, then the movie does a quick fast-forward to six months later, perhaps we'll get some understanding later on about what just got skipped over. The family's still together, still under lockdown, with only Jack leaving the house to go into town, barter home baked goods at the general store for necessities, and visit Allie, who's working at the local library and still fending off Tom Porter's affections. Some notable changes around the house, though, there are now sheets over all the mirrors to protect them from a "ghost", their dead mother's room is off-limits, and the door to the attic has been bricked up. I'm sure there's a perfectly irrational explanation for all of this.
Jack's able to deal with the lawyer looking to complete the transfer of the estate, because he's able to convince the lawyer that his mother is still alive, only ill and bedridden, and also get his sister to forge their mother's signature, plus he uses some of the money that belonged to that mysterious stranger. It's British pounds, which is an inconvenience, but he overpays the lawyer enough that he doesn't care. Besides, what could possibly go wrong, using some dead man's money to pay for something?
OK, that's enough plot from me, I'm going to shut up now because spoilers - but perhaps I've said just enough to make this film sound as intriguing as it really is. There's some trickery involved here, don't get me wrong, but if you're trying to figure out what happened and how things got to be the way they are, you still may be very surprised when the reveals start to come. The plot had to be bent over backwards and sideways a few times to bring about the desired result, and there's a toggle between the past and the present that sort of evokes a very particular fake-out scene from "The Silence of the Lambs". There are twists and then there are twists, and some famous movies that had them were "Psycho", "The Sixth Sense" and "Fight Club" - this one's not exactly like any of those, but I think it's kind of in the ballpark? Yet also unique.
There's just something a bit OFF about this film, maybe because it's a Spanish film, made in Spain but set in New England? Nothing really looks right in a way, but you can tell yourself that's maybe just how things looked in 1969? I don't know. It doesn't really matter, since no Americans watched this film in the theaters - it grossed under $1,500 in North America. Maybe it found a second life on streaming platforms? I think it's at least worth a go - I watched it on iTunes but it's also on Amazon - not Prime but some of the specialty channels. You can catch it on GooglePlay or YouTube - hell, you can watch nearly anything these days if you're willing to drop $2.99, which I only do if I have to.
Also starring George MacKay (last seen in "1917"), Mia Goth (last seen in "Emma."), Matthew Stagg, Nicola Harrison (last seen in "The Impossible"), Kyle Soller (last seen in "The Trip to Spain"), Tom Fisher (last seen in "The Current War: The Director's Cut"), Myra Kathryn Pearse, Paul Jesson (last seen in "Mr. Turner"), Robert Nairne (last seen in "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story"), Laura Brook and the voice of Adam Quintero.
RATING: 6 out of 10 kitchen matches
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