Director: Liam Gavin
Starring: Steve Oram, Catherine Walker
As summer slowly slips away from the United Kingdom, thoughts inevitably start turning to autumn and the darker nights. These nights are best paired with a scary movie and A Dark Song, which arrives on DVD from Monday 7th August, is the perfect film for just that setting. Directed by Liam Gavin, in what is his feature debut, A Dark Song offers a unsettling tale of occultism that will chill you to your very core.
Sophia (Catherine Walker – Holby City) is a woman drowning in her grief. Her young son was tragically killed, and no matter how she tries, she cannot come to terms with it. Taking drastic action, she tracks down Solomon (Steve Oram – Sightseers), an occultist, to help her communicate with her son one last time. In order to complete the ancient invocation ritual, the pair must shut themselves off from society completely, shacking up in a remote country house. Once safely secluded, they begin the long and arduous ritual, but it isn’t long before Solomon realises that Sophia is hiding something, and in doing so, has put both of them in danger. It soon becomes apparent that they are no longer alone in the house – can they complete the ritual with their lives and sanity in tact?
For a feature debut, A Dark Song is very accomplished. Gavin, who also wrote the film, has crafted a strange Lovecraft-meets-Barker tale that subverts the norms. There’s a distinct creepy edge to everything and everyone, the audience never really knowing who to trust – Sophia or Solomon. Set within the confines of one house, there’s an air of cabin fever simmering just below the surface, and as both Solomon and Sophia approach the brink of madness, the film enters some very dark places.
These disturbing deeds are handled beautifully by both Walker and Oram. There is a very sadomasochistic tone to the relationship between our lead characters, and in other hands the film could have disintegrated into either silliness or depravity. Instead, Oram and Walker walk the line between both, and generate an uncomfortable watch for the viewer. The dynamic between actors is great, and you can see that there is a lot of trust within their bond, this bond enabling both to give subtle and powerful performances.
Those anticipating a lot of action and scares should know that A Dark Song is much cleverer than that. Rather than kick of the ghoulish action right away, it is instead teased slowly. The tension built up gradually until it can no longer be contained, at which point it bursts forth and offers a very welcome pay-off. A slow-burning psychological horror, A Dark Song takes you on a journey to the brink of insanity before assaulting you with some wickedly nightmarish images.
Best viewed alone in the dark, A Dark Song is a strong and compelling feature debut. With echoes of Barker and Lovecraft, director Liam Gavin may just have made occult movies relevant again.
A Dark Song is available on all home entertainment platforms from Monday 7th August.