Sonata - Symphonie des Teufels

An interesting case for me - an unlikely indie I saw on the local big screen on Halloween eve, it was shown here because the movie is shot almost entirely in the country I live in (Latvia), mainly in the 19th century Cesvaine Palace, where I've also been. I was very intrigued upon hearing about it - I had no idea there was such a project. It's hard to understand how much bias I possess criticizing "The Sonata", but it was indeed quite enjoyable.

"The Sonata" starts off with a pretty cool POV style intro and the late Rutger Hauer himself, the first half of the movie we spend mostly listening to a lot of story building dialogue, getting to know the archaic but decent characters, and also enjoying decent original score that's almost a character itself. The atmosphere feels gothic, misty, at times spooky and at times like its reaching for something but not quite achieving it. All the performances are commendable, I especially enjoyed the one by Simon Abkarian. The second half is the better half, things start to escalate more, atmosphere gets more dense, there are one or two actually good jumpscares and a somewhat lacking but acceptable climax. Cinematography's fine for the most part, the main location is utilised competently & effectively, even the cgi used managed to not cross the line of cheese.

The story as a whole is nothing new really, it might make you reminisce about better interpretations of the same thing, but with a pinch of occult themes, a splash of cleverly included music "The Sonata" offers a decent entertainment for anyone who enjoys ghost stories, paranormal horror, gothic mood pieces and classical music. As for me, the additional value was to see places & nature that's very familiar to me get used in probably the biggest horror movie ever filmed in this small country. My rating: 6/10.

Firstly, the cinematography is wonderful, but it looks like it was shot on video, a shame they couldn't have made it more film like, as the video effect makes it look cheap.

The female lead is desperately unlikeable, maybe she's meant to be, but I think making her personality a little more pleasant would have been a good thing.

There is bags of atmosphere here, but the story seems rushed, and at just about 83 minutes running time, it could have been longer and the story fleshed out more.

Also, for anyone considering the German blu ray which has an English soundtrack, well yes it does, but there are three instances of French being spoken, and there are no English subtitles for them, which means you have to switch the German subtitles on, and then use Google translate, unless you speak French of course!

The idea is great, but the execution isn't that brilliant, a bigger budget would definitely have helped here.

Greetings again from the darkness. A throwback to 1970's cinema is easy to appreciate, whether it was intended or nor. Writer-director Andrew Desmond's debut feature film certainly serves up the feel and style of so many of those low-budget horror films I watched as a youngster (many, it seemed, featured the late Roddy McDowall). Mr. Desmond and co-writer Arthur Morin (also his first feature film screenplay) likely viewed some of those same films, as this one succeeds in capturing the same creepy tone.

For some, the music they create comes from their soul ... it makes them who they are. For these musicians, their obsession and quest for perfection can be off-putting to others. In an early sequence, we see young violist Rose Fisher (Freya Tingley, "Once Upon a Time") react to news of her father's death by shrugging and stating she wants to continue with her recording session. See, Rose's father deserted the family when she was a toddler, and the two never spoke again. Richard Marlowe (Rutger Hauer) was an exciting and brilliant young composer when he chose to drop out and live as a recluse (think Salinger). He's even compared to Pink Floyd founding member Syd Barrett. Rose chose to never use her genetics as a springboard to success; never even telling her manager Charles Vernais (Simon Abkarian, CASINO ROYALE) of the connection.

Rose visits Marlowe's house, and before learning of the startling manner in which his life ended, she discovers his final composition locked away in a drawer ... a violin sonata seemingly left for her to find. Neither Rose nor Charles recognize some of the non-musical symbols included on the sheet music, but it's clear there are elements of genius in the piece. While Charles envisions piles of cash to be made by capitalizing on this situation, Rose sets about tracking down clues to the unknown symbols by exploring her father's estate.

It should be noted that Marlowe's "house" is actually the 19th century Cesvaine Palace, and it makes a wonderfully gothic setting for this story. This sub-genre of horror films is always best when the setting is a creepy old mansion/castle, and includes a mysterious housekeeper, other-worldly children, a leather-bound book of secrets, and a subterranean room (this one is beneath a chapel) with curious wall murals telling some forbidden legend of the occult. The only element missing here is vicious dog that pops up periodically.

The symbols lead to a French secret society, and in their own ways, both Rose and Charles learn that finishing Marlowe's final piece will conjure the Anti-Christ. While Charles pursues greed, Rose pursues the music. Spoken words pale in comparison to the music Rose creates. Screen veteran James Faulkner appears as Sir Victor Ferdinand in a vital supporting role. While it's a bit disappointing that the late, great Rutger Hauer has very little screen time, it's quite enjoyable to watch Ms. Tingley carry the lead. Mr. Desmond filmed in Latvia, and delivers a film that fits quite nicely for those who enjoy the creepy throwback horror style.

A brilliant young violinist inherits the music of her estranged father, a mysterious composer, but it leads her down the path to darkness ...

Curious case of an ordinary tale with extraordinary potential. I was looking forward to a cinematic treatment of an evil phenomenon in music, but it didn't go there in the end, although I do think the idea was covered in the score.

Instead, we get a traditional story with a puzzle in the symbolologicaltastic manner of Dan Brown - clever, but not enlightening, and nothing that couldn't have been dealt with in a 60m TV episode.

The performances are good, with an odd difference in height between the two leads. There is material for the actors to get their teeth into, but the characters remain fairly simple, despite the dark past of family estrangement (the mother's story wasn't followed up) and alcoholism. I'm also thinking of the housekeeper, who really just shows up for exposition - in a film noir or in David Lynch she would serve several purposes at once and deepen our unease, focus the drama.

The cinematography is quality. Not so sure about the direction, and certainly the editing and story line are a bit plain. The opening scene is effective, but had the feel of a first person POV sequence in an old video game. The choice of location at the old mansion was way over the top, immediately raising all sorts of irrelevant questions - it's not Dracula's Castle!

The evil phenomenon in the music is the Devil's interval, which the lush score hits repeatedly - that unresolved discord made familiar through so many genres of disturbing music, and I hoped the story would somehow turn on this. Hard to say how to do it without ending up as '60s psychedelia, but I think it would need a shift of perception, a shift in the story-telling itself, to provide an interval in reality through which we slide down to Hell. Ahem. You know what I mean. But not this time.

Overall: Good production, but lack of depth in the story.

The photography in this film is quite marvellous, as well as the atmosphere and, certainly, the music. The story is a bit lacking and it's been poorly executed. Overall, it was enjoyable, if one doesn't ask questions or even tries not to think. It had a promise of being an outstanding movie, but turned out weak.