Before I review this film, I would like to spend some ink discussing the genre of the film. Although the need to classify films by nature is not so great, there are still some labels that are unconsciously applied to films, except that everyone may have different definitions and bases for classifying the same film genre, and there may be some concepts that are vague and not so clear to distinguish. For me, the distinction between horror and thriller has made me hesitant.
When I think about it, horror emphasizes the impact of audio-visual effects, while thriller focuses more on the creation of atmosphere and the growth and spread of psychological fear. Compared to the former naked visual shock and a strong challenge to sensory stimulation, the latter silent penetration of the audience’s appeal is more deadly temptation – may not scream, or even silent and quiet even a pin drop can be heard very clearly, but can be in the let people suck back a cold breath, heartbeat suddenly accelerated, the body involuntarily leaned back; may not be terrible or disgusting images, or even blank or dark, but can make people as if they were there with the characters in the play left and right, trembling, back straight up in a cold sweat, but the atmosphere does not dare to come out, do not dare to take it lightly.
Horror that does not allow people to feel the point of fear is a failure of horror, without creating psychological fear is a low level of horror, while the thriller is an upgraded version of horror, is the need for imagination and keen perception of the high level of horror. However, if the thriller is the only selling point of the film, and no specific background and complete plot support, just for the purpose of scaring people deliberately, then it can not be considered the best thriller. Therefore, the addition of suspense elements will become the most effective means to enrich the content of the film, and even sometimes the suspense component more than the thriller, but the suspense and thriller formed a subtle and complementary relationship. The Island Fright” is one such example, although the thriller point is not at all as much as expected, the narrative style is also on the bland and slow side, the heavy suspense still makes it wonderful, people can not stop, long aftertaste, saddened by the feeling.
The film in the audience’s doubts in the development of the plot, the audience and with the advancement of the story continue to discover new clues, new suspicions, and constantly correct, deny or even overturn all previous speculation, and so on until the moment of truth, if you can get “ah, so it is” sigh, is a successful suspense film. In the hour and a half of watching “Island Fright”, I had many speculations about the possibility of the truth, such as Ann has paranoia, split personality disorder, the three servants to evict Grace’s family to occupy the house, the house is cursed by witches, the haunting of the imprisoned ghost is a prank or revenge on humans, etc., but never could be explained, there are always questions lingering in the mind. When the answer is suddenly revealed at the end, and then calm down to think carefully, to see everyone’s understanding and additions on Douban, doubts are solved one by one, only to find that there was so much padding, the original unbelievable rules and diseases, the gloomy gray background color, the characters do not know the dialogue between all the details are a deeper meaning, everything is to provide a reasonable and perfect note of truth. I can’t help but sigh, even when watching the film constantly running brain, but still not careful enough, insight is not enough, the ability to connect the clues and interpretation is not enough, so overlooked so manytip, misread so manytrick.
However, the most unexpected thing is that behind this truth lies a heartbreaking story, containing an ordinary family’s complaint against the war. When a person is still attached to life, dies a painful death, dies a resentful death, dies a resentful death, dies a wrongful death, then will it really be like the Grace family in the movie, escaping the reality of their own death, preferring to believe that it was just a nightmare? “What compelled her to kill her children with her own hands? Did the news of her husband’s death hit her so hard that she had a nervous breakdown and lost her sense of normalcy, or did she kill her children to prevent them from falling into the hands of the Nazis and suffering humiliation, and was unwilling to submit to them? Either way, it is depressing and sad. When the Grace family was in their greatest need, the Jesus and Mary they believed in did not save them, and when they died, their souls did not reach the so-called heaven, hell or the afterlife. The happy life in life was completely destroyed by the war, and after death, they not only continue the pain in life, but also have to share the same living space with the living, not scared by ghosts in life, but after death, they have to adapt to be scared by the living. Or is it that suffering is everywhere, all the time, and there is no difference between the yang and yin worlds as preached in religion.
The film’s picture and sound treatment is quite simple and clean, the excellent performance of the actors added a lot of weight to the success of the film. Nicole Kidman as the matriarch Grace, an arrogant and serious dictator, who pours out all her love to her children and husband, suffers all the pressure, and shows her neurotic and highly nervous state of mind when grotesque events occur in her home is impressive. But compared to Nicole Kidman, the stubborn and intelligent daughter Ann, the timid and well-behaved Nicolas, the mysterious housekeeper Mrs. Miller and the trance-weakened hero Charles are no less impressive, and it is this series of vivid characters and performances that make the film even more compelling.
btw, or back to the film’s plot, although many questions are satisfactorily explained, but there are still places that are impermeable. But where the film involves paranormal events and the depiction of space, the test is the writer and director’s ability to explain themselves, but where the film does not clearly give an explanation of the doubts, the test is the audience’s ability to explain themselves. The only thing that is certain is that what appears in front of Grace is not a living person, but a spirit. As far as I can see, his physical condition shows that he was in a wounded and very weak state before he lost consciousness, so it is possible to say that he is a vegetable, a coma or has died in battle. Looking for a way back because he misses his family, the difference is that if he is not dead, his soul is out of his body, his wish is fulfilled, and he is a wandering soul, Grace made him realize that the battlefield is the place where his soul is buried. As for his wife killed his children and then committed suicide so that he could not forgive his wife, can also be seen as one of the reasons he left, but certainly he has accepted all the facts about himself and his family, rather than just appear “do not know where they are”. In the end, on the basis of Mrs. Miller said “the book may not be true”, the audience does not have to stick to any of the previous books or film and television works, both Chinese and foreign, can use their imagination, how to explain how to explain, can explain themselves on the line, because there is no such thing as the right answer!