The Quiet Ones

I cut it off at 25 min...constantly having to adjust the volume. Loud as hell, characters whispering, loud as hell, characters whispering...SO ANNOYING

"The Quiet Ones" focuses on a three students at the University of Oxford who join a research group led by Dr. Joseph Coupland (Jared Harris). The group is working to document parapsychological phenomenon in a young woman whom they believe has created and manifests a presence which she calls Evie. Isolated in the back country outside of Oxford, the group begins to unravel and secrets come to light.

I first off have to say that the primary reason I saw this film was because the poster was breathtaking— Gothic, beautiful, and unconventional. I wasn't even that impressed with the trailer, but the poster had some promise for me. Now, after seeing the film, I have mixed feelings.

It starts off well enough, and maintains a sense of ambiguity in its early stages, keeping the audience at arm's length; this is wonderful during the first act, but the problem is that it never seems to break free of this, even as the plot unravels and the truth comes out in the end— there is little surprise in the film because it never lets its audience in close enough to be affected by it. Clunky pacing and editing is largely the culprit here, which seems to prevent the film from ever really gaining steam. Instead, we are presented with a series of repetitious happenings that fail to build on one another, and the film edges on becoming an unmemorable blur as a consequence. The script feasts heavily on the staples of 21st century American horror films to its own detriment— we have possessed girls in white dresses, Satanic symbols, demons, religious cults, blah, blah, blah. You know the story.

That said, the film does have some strengths. The script is purportedly based on an actual experiment done in Toronto in the 1970s, so the film does have that working in its favor, no matter how ludicrous it is to take the events depicted at face value— the fact that there is at least a shred of truth to this is compelling in a world where every horror film released makes false claims of being based on reality. It is also remarkably well photographed; the interplay between the standard camera and the 8mm footage being filmed by the characters lends the picture a unique mood and sense of voyeurism, and the depictions of the experiments at times recall John Hough's British classic, "The Legend of Hell House." The performances in the film are also solid, with Jared Harris reeling everything in.

I think the overall problem I had with this film was, despite the fact that it roots itself in history as a period piece, the majority of it is just frankly underwhelming because it too often takes the route of 90% of the horror films we see released here in America every month. The premise is intriguing, but the execution leaves us with a relatively well-made film whose main problem is that is just isn't that darned compelling. 6/10.

The Quiet Ones is a new British horror movie from the makers of The Woman in Black. Produced by the classic crafters of horror, Hammer Productions, the film follows an Oxford professor (Jared Harris), his tutees and a student cameraman (Sam Claflin) as they attempt to both prove and document the theory that supernatural powers are simply a manifestation of psychological trauma. They begin studying a young girl who believes she is possessed by an evil entity, and a strange relationship begins to develop between her and cameraman Brian as the professor's attempts to create a poltergeist take their toll.

In an era where endless Paranormal Activity sequels, squeezing every buck out of the found-footage genre and reliance purely on cattle-prod jump scares, it's refreshing to see a horror film that seems to have been made by people who understand how suspense works. In the same way that Woman in Black tricked you into thinking that it's going to be a run-of-the-mill horror flick set in a creaky old house but did something interesting, The Quiet Ones uses the 'house in the middle of nowhere' setting in a way that doesn't just turn the lights off and throw furniture around when things go wrong.

While rare (but noticeable), there are still uses of very loud noises out of absolutely nowhere to accentuate the scares, but asides from that, they are achieved through realistic and unobtrusive special effects, a sparing but effective use of a rumbling, mechanical musical score (there is something to be said for music that can make a scene of occult research feel intense) and an unflinching refusal by the camera to shy away from the horror. The camera-work is an interesting mix of live-action and old celluloid stock filmed from the perspective of the cameraman as he observes the increasing number of bizarre and terrifying events unfolding before the investigators.

As far as performances go, Jared Harris is well cast as the physics professor slowly declining into madness in a knowing manner very reminiscent of classic Hammer-horror and Sam Claflin builds a lot on his brief performance in Catching Fire, creating a very believable character struggling with his own beliefs as the absolute horror of the experiment becomes increasingly harder to deal with. Olivia Cooke is also very good as Jane, the tortured subject of the experiment, taking a very over-used character (the silent, unblinking possessed girl) and doing something interesting with it, alternating between an almost comatose recluse and a young woman dealing with adolescence and emerging emotions.

The running time of just less than 100 minutes means that some of the character development feels a little rushed, but it means that the film has adequate time to set up scares, deliver on the suspense, and create an intriguing story without feeling repetitive. Taking unexpected turns, featuring good performances and inciting real fear in the audience, The Quiet Ones is a very welcome breath of fresh air in mainstream horror movies, proving once again that constant scenes of exorcisms and annoying families with camcorders have become tired old tropes and that the best thing to do is wipe that all away and focus on believable characters and more interesting methods to create a genuinely tense atmosphere.

The Quiet Ones is the latest offering from resurrected horror studios Hammer Films. After the mixed fortunes of The Resident, Wake Wood, Let Me In and The Woman in Black, the studio that was once the spearhead of Great British horror lets rip with a chilling tale, purportedly based on truth, about a psychiatric patient's apparent supernatural abilities.

University professor Joseph Coupland (Jared Harris) and his research students, Krissi (Erin Richards) and Harry (Rory Fleck-Byrne), study Jane Harper (Olivia Cooke) through a slot in a locked door as, alone in her room, she appears able to summon the dead. While Jane torments herself and suffers at the hands of an apparent poltergeist, Coupland and his team endeavour to explain every occurrence with reason and logic. He recruits a young filmmaker, Brian (Sam Claflin), to document the experiment but Brian falls for Jane and her behavior becomes ever more extreme. But everything can be explained with science. Can't it?

We've been here before. The Quiet Ones is not an entirely original idea, but then neither was The Borderlands, and look how unnerving that was! It's a fine idea with great settings (Oxford University, an abandoned mansion) and good performances. The trouble is, for a horror it isn't terribly scary. I sat down for the screening expecting to grip the arms of my seat, scrunch up my toes and wonder again what the hell I was doing putting myself through this. Alas, the hair on the back of my neck remained largely prostrate. Maybe three horror films in a week deadens the impact.

There are plenty good 'jumps' but most are introduced with a rousing score or an obvious lull in activity. There are a few red herrings to build the tension and leave the viewer taut with expectation but at no point could I say I was scared or needed to look away from the screen to remind myself I was safe and in a cinema and not right there and about to be evil's next victim. Being on edge is good, but not good enough.

The special effects work well and there are one or two particularly enjoyable moments where DoP Mátyás Erdély has let rip with the lighting and camera work. Likewise, the props and set dressing set the scene beautifully but, were it not for the cast, John Pogue's film would be merely dull instead of at least managing to be enjoyable.

The last time I saw Jared Harris, he was swinging at the end of a rope in Mad Men and it's great to see him back on the big screen in a role that is less constricting than that of Lane Pryce. His Coupland is a combination of obsessive sleazebag and kindly mentor and the blend is perfect, never veering into the realms of pastiche. Likewise, Richards, most recently seen in Open Grave, draws us in with her determined temptress, the kind of girl you'd want to know but never cross.

It is Olivia Cooke, though, who makes The Quiet Ones worthwhile. It is difficult not to focus on her when she appears, even fleetingly, upon the screen. The other actors are her guests as she commands our attention. Always convincing as Jane the vulnerable waif, acolyte of evil and desperate victim, she manages to be sexy and enticing despite her sunken eyes and bruised skin; a black widow that Brian, unsurprisingly, struggles to resist. Let's hope Cooke isn't merely a saving grace in her next project: screenwriter Stiles White's directorial debut, Ouija.

The morning after, The Quiet Ones remains an intriguing story, true or not, that is well performed. But it lacks guts or real bite and, perhaps, could do with being a lot louder.

Or at least whispering in a very sinister way…

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Aside from The Exorcist, possession films always seem so lacking. They never have enough real, human tension. They focus on predictable jump scares and an even more predictable plot. It's safe to say that, in general, possession films don't have much to offer. Thankfully, The Quiet Ones does not suffer from the same faults of many other similar films.

Rather than simply focus on the dark progression of a possessed being, The Quiet Ones presents the frustrating fears that torment the young, inexperienced scientists, as they struggle with their desire to help a suffering being through the means of science and logic, the underlying threat of possible demonic possession,and the obsessive nature of Professor Coupland.

The performance of the cast is top notch, the effects are subtle, the only disappointing aspect was the very, very end, and the fact that as a whole, the film just wasn't that scary. Still, if the concept of possession interests you, but you've been disappointed with past projects, you might want to give this a shot.