‘She Will’ Review
Stars: Alice Krige, Malcolm McDowell, Rupert Everett, Kota Eberhardt, Amy Manson, Olwen Fouere, Daniel Lapaine, John McCrea, Jonathan Aris, Kenneth Collard, Joanna Bacon | Written by Charlotte Colbert, Kitty Percy | Directed by Charlotte Colbert
As much as I love the blood and guts of gory horror, the laughs of comedy horror or the big-budgeted genre flicks, my favourite sub-genre of horror at the moment is the slow-burn films, full of atmosphere that usually have an ending worth waiting for. She Will looked like it was going to be one of those movies.
After a double mastectomy, Veronica heads to a healing retreat in rural Scotland. She goes with her young nurse, Desi, expecting to be alone for the retreat but instead ends up at a group event. Clearly not comfortable with other people being there she needs persuading to stay and Desi and she become closer. While there she learns to confront past traumas and supernatural happenings start occurring.
At first, She Will seems a little confusing and you might be unsure where it’s heading but it soon settles into a more straightforward route and it’s clear where first-time feature film director Charlotte Colbert’s influences are from. She Will isn’t trying to make a ‘jump out of your seat’ scary horror movie. She Will is all about its atmosphere and on that, it works very well. There’s always that dark undertow there, especially any flashbacks and mentions of the past trauma. The film is literally, and deliberately dark to look at as well. Rural Scotland looks bleak, the ‘cabin’ (it’s not really a cabin due to its size) they stay in looks perfect for a horror movie and the nearby woodland looks exactly like somewhere you would not want to get lost in.
Casting some cult horror actors works well. In this case, Malcolm McDowell is really enjoyable in a small role – he always has such a great presence on screen – while Olwen Fouere has an even smaller role. In the two leads, experienced actress Alice Krige (Star Trek, Silent Hill) uses all that experience in the role with a great performance. Kota Eberhardt is much less experienced (although she did star in X-Men: Dark Phoenix) but you couldn’t really tell and she more than holds her own. I’d be surprised if you don’t see her in other blockbuster movies in the next few years.
Although I called She Will a slow burn of a movie it never drags or feels like it isn’t really going anywhere. There are constant nods to where it is heading and while the ending isn’t shocking, it’s well-executed and looks great.
The basic visual effects that usually occur in dreams, look great and compliment the bleak style of the movie. Those dreams are some of the most interesting moments of the movie and although it’s clear what is happening, there’s a good job of blending reality and the dream world.
While it doesn’t hit the heights of movies such as Hereditary, The Invitation or The Witch, She Will does offer a dark, gothic psychological horror alternative to these and similar titles. It’s an impressive debut from Colbert who uses horror to represent much more real issues.
