(This review may contain spoilers).
Looking through the horror movies on Netflix, this was one that immediately stood out. While I was a bit unsure of the movie first off, considering just how many bad horror movies I’ve stumbled across, I was pleasantly surprised by this movie.
While it’s very clear, from Lily’s narration at the beginning of the movie, how it will end, the journey to get there was unexpected and actually hauntingly beautiful at times. The way the lives and deaths of Polly, Iris and Lily were intertwined was actually quite powerful and while there were a lot of unanswered questions by the end of the movie, I was left feeling quite moved and almost with the sensation of wanting to watch the movie again for the first time.
The confusion exhibited by Iris was almost heartbreaking to watch and although there were some creepy moments in this movie, the atmosphere itself was almost calming, which is a strange way of describing a horror movie. There wasn’t really any violence, even in the story and hints of what happened to Polly.
At the beginning, Lily seemed quite stilted and uncomfortable, which seemed more because of the character than the actress. I actually very much liked watching her little habits and getting to know her as a character, something I don’t tend to see so much with other horror films, that are more interested in making the audience jump than in forming an emotional connection to the characters, to the point of caring about the inevitable ending.
I do think the scenes of Polly as a ghost detracted from the atmosphere of the movie. The flashbacks worked well, but as soon as the viewers started seeing things in greater detail, I think the movie lost some of its effectiveness. The blurred images were much more hard-hitting and fit better with the narration at the beginning.
I don’t think I’ll watch this movie again. Not because I didn’t engage with it, but I don’t think it would be as effective to already know what’s going to happen. For me, this was an effective one-time movie.
Ink of Blood 