Fright (2024) Review

1937. Emily (Gwyneth Evans) is close to becoming an adult but her forthcoming eighteenth birthday won’t be much of a cause for celebration as, due to chronic agoraphobia. she has never left the rambling, crumbling gothic pile which is her home. Haunted by visions of a gnarled, black hand, Emily longs for the day her long absent father will return home and save her, but her strict, overbearing mother (Jill Priest) insists that he is gone forever and that Emily needs to be more concerned with the terrors lurking outside…

In an era with so much horror that’s cranked up to eleven in terms of sound and fury, it’s pleasing to take the odd detour into a simpler, more measured time. Warren Dudley’s Fright, presented in black and white and performed in that slightly mannered method of many a 1950s Brit chiller, evokes the atmosphere of those films which play in the afternoons on those channels which currently celebrate retro fare. The style of the opening titles, the fine score and the leisurely, dialogue-heavy opening act suggest this is from a bygone era.

Received pronunciation and a wartime-attuned attitude of treating the most major upheavals as mere trifles is the order of the day here. Devastating psychological effects are dealt with as a frightful inconvenience. A particularly amusing, chattering class approach its applied to its characterisations too. Folks who don’t speak with cut glass accents are viewed as either loveable, uncomplicated, salt o the earth types or hideous rotters who are clearly wrong ‘uns. It’s this attention to the details of a long gone age which adds to the fun. When it comes to facing down a demon a certain amount of the old stiff upper lip comes into play and, failing that, there’s always fainting.

It’s easy to view the melodrama of a different generation as parody and the in-built tone means that Fright can mine the humorous reactions of a more sophisticated, modern day viewing public while still being able to generate some effective emotional beats. That said, the odd, startling moment along the way reminds the viewer that this indeed is a horror movie, even if it isn’t one with revving chainsaws and screaming college kids. The lightning of a storm illuminates a creepy plot point in a way which echoes a certain Hitchcock classic while still retaining its own spin. If creeping around old, dark houses is your thing, there’s plenty of that here too.

The budget for this one probably wasn’t huge but it’s my use of the word “probably” which is my way of saying it doesn’t look cheap. Some of the digital visuals possess an inevitable air of the uncanny but the practical effects work well, the choice of its location adds vital production value and mounting the mystery in monochrome lends a naturally unnerving atmosphere to the proceedings.

The small number of cast members inevitably means that the body count is not exactly up there with Hatchet and that the pace, certainly in the first half, is languid, Dudley’s screenplay doing its level best to drip feed potential clues at the slowest rate it can get away with. As interesting a pairing as Evans and Priest are, their loaded conversations can only take the story so far and the odd glimpse of what may or may not be lurking in the shadows may not be enough for those who crave a gory kill every five minutes. However, horror is thankfully the broadest of churches and this will play nicely into the sensibilities of those who like to soak up atmosphere rather than regular disembowelling.

The blurb for Fright mentions both The Innocents and The Haunting, which signposts the general direction of travel even if the destination isn’t quite in the same chilly environs as those giants of the time. This may not win over those who like their scares with a side order of a pile of bloody corpses but this is an accurate pastiche in terms of style and performances and its unsensational tack is paradoxically bold in an era when ever wilder transgressions are the order of the day to get a shocker noticed. It won’t be everyone’s cup of Earl Grey but I found it to be a  change of pace and it’s always encouraging to see Brits getting involved in indie horror output. Turn your gore dial down and give this one a go.

Movie Rating:

Fright trailer