With a dreadful, disquieting atmosphere pervading its frames and a dark, disturbing mystery simmering beneath the surface, The Night House makes for a gripping, haunting & gradually escalating psychological horror with a plot that only gets more uneasy & uncomfortable as it progresses, and is powerfully anchored by Rebecca Hall's emotionally engrossing showcase.
Directed by David Bruckner (The Ritual), the story explores loss, grief, depression, loneliness, death & longing through vehicles of horror and is able to keep us invested in the proceedings throughout its runtime with surprising ease. Bruckner fills the space with an unnerving chill & sense of dread and unravels the mystery one step at a time but the ending isn't as satisfying as expected.
The isolated setting, silent camerawork, steady pace & smart editing help ratchet the tension when required while the poignant score keeps reminding us of the crushing weight of the void that's opened up in our protagonist's life in the wake of her husband's demise. And rendering her loss & depression with unfailing precision is Rebecca Hall in what's undoubtedly amongst her career-best performances.
Overall, The Night House is an intelligently crafted, skilfully told, effectively shot & brilliantly acted genre offering that quietly immerses the viewers into its unsettling premise and has a firm grip on our emotions before we even know it. Exhibiting first-rate work on all fronts and further bolstered by Hall's committed act, this atmospheric horror does falter in the last act but everything before it is intense & riveting. Don't miss it.
