Unearth (2020) Review

Two neighbouring families, the Dolans and the Lomacks, are struggling to make their farmland pay. Whereas the Dolans, particularly tough as nails matriarch Kathryn (played by genre stalwart Adrienne Barbeau), persist with their view that the soil will eventually give back to them if they treat it right, the Lomacks are in a monetary bind that a few tune-ups by mechanic dad George (Marc Blucas) just won’t solve.

Staring at financial ruin, George is swayed by the incentive of leasing his land to a fracking company, banking on the forthcoming royalties from that enterprise. As soon as the machinery moves in, tensions increase between the families and matters only go from bad to worse when the drilling releases a malevolent presence from underground.

Unearth is a slow burner of an eco-horror flick in which the balance between rural drama and environmental terror may be far too much in favour of the former for genre fans to truly lap up. There’s plenty going on in the first hour in terms of character beats – unfulfilled dreams, a none-too-clandestine affair, a subplot in which one of the protagonists attempts to come to terms with her same-sex desires and more to fuel the potboiler besides.

The screenplay from Kelsey Goldberg and John C. Lyons often feels like it’s skirting a fine line between shocker and soap opera but the fine performances do much to stave off the melodrama.

However, the various arcs and extremely gradual build up also take away much of the potential tension, leaving a series of sequences in which there’s too much soul searching and not nearly enough soul squishing. It’s generally up to the more seasoned players such as Blucas and Barbeau to hold the interest, the latter dishing out a world-beating line in withering looks and hinting that the representative of the fracking company might find himself keeping a date with her shotgun if he pushes his luck.

A mention must also go to Rachel McKeon as Heather, one of the younger, smarter voices of the piece whose reactions to the shocks of the final third are impressively naturalistic. That last half hour is where Unearth finally pitches its horror camp for the remainder of the running time, unveiling a couple of genuinely horrific set pieces which are all the better for being downplayed.

There’s an impressive sense of desperation to the climax as there looks to be no way out for a bunch of folks who’ve incurred the wrath of a vengeful ecosystem. I don’t think it’s much of a spoiler to say there are deaths – it’s the third act of a horror film, folks – but they’re mostly grimy and wilfully unspectacular, save for a shot of the chilling and gruesome effects of the poisoned land on its unwilling victim. The final scene does offer a glimmer of hope but in keeping with Unearth’s generally downbeat nature, any sense of even the smallest victory is muted.

There’s no mystery as to where this film’s heart lies. The anti-fracking message is neither subtle nor is it hammered home quite as much as you might be expecting, frequently taking a back seat to the everyday woes of its characters until the simmering dread turns to reality. For some it may be political tub-thumping of the worst kind, for others a necessary light shone through a genre lens on what could be seen as a dangerous practice.

It’s slightly tricky to view – and review – Unearth without simply seen to be taking sides. It isn’t for me to tell you my views about fracking here and I’d be doing you a disservice if I did. As a movie, Unearth is uneven. There’s no doubting the earnest nature of the script and the quality of many of its performances but the decision to wait over an hour before unleashing the horror could mean that its audience may have given up by then, which would be a shame because there are a few effectively grim moments once things really get going.

An interesting entry into the subgenre of environmental frighteners, Unearth is too on the nose in places and too standoffish in others. It will satisfy the anti-fracking campaigners and annoy the pro-fracking lobby just because of its position. As a horror film, it’s oddly structured but worth seeing if only for the brilliant Adrienne Barbeau and a couple of moments during the extended finale which may lodge in the memory.

Signature Entertainment presents Unearth on DVD and Digital Platforms 28th June.

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