The Canal

Independent film The Canal smartly produces a slow-paced psychological horror that interesting imagines a new take on the haunting genre.

Ivan Kavanagh is the brainchild behind this original and brilliantly conceived film. The Canal is more atmospheric than most horror films currently being produced and very psychological with a horrific twist. The slow paced groundwork is eerie and unsettling but expertly done. The characters and smart and savvy in trying discern reality from imagination, or worse, supernatural occurrences.

The beginning scenes of The Canal are deliberately jumpy, adding to the confusion and anxiety the main character David experiences. A bit more clarity would have helped the film viewers experience the intended disorientation while avoiding pure confusion. I personally think the film was just a tad too slow in the beginning and Kavanagh will lose impatient movie watchers unsure of whether the investment will be worth it.

Without spoiling the ending, I thoroughly enjoyed it and it had me squirming and gasping. The Canal is a slow burn, with Kavanagh pacing the film so audience members are psychologically bewildered to savor the conclusive reveal.

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This is definitely a more familiar sort of slow-paced, atmospheric horror, but like so many of its kind, when done right they really work. This isn't a slam dunk or anything, but it's pretty effective for what it is. If you really don't overthink everything, you sort of know everything that is going on, but it doesn't matter. It has some truly strong performances here, and the atmosphere allows for some really creepy scenes to ensue. The climax could use from even more outlandish material, but as it is it makes its point and is pretty effective. For horror fans this is recommended, and for everyone else, well, look as to what types of films you like.

Despite some of the poor reviews I've read here, I found this to be a completely coherent and excellent psychological Thriller/Horror movie! Yes you will see some themes borrowed from other films, but let's be honest every movie does that. The cinematography was amazing. The score was arranged with a lot of attention to details and made it perfect backdrop to the film. Transitions and shadows were creepy and eerie. About the only thing that annoyed me what's the editing in which the way the editor wood chop out frames causing a time jump effect. This worked okay as a transition but awful during actress dialogue. All in all it was a great movie.

A pretty effective thriller even if the script uses the usual old clichés of ghost movies. I had a good time watching it and wasn't disappointed. However, I deplore the use (around 43 or 44 minutes of film) of the real photographs of Sharon Tate's crime scene after she was brutally murdered by Manson's followers. I think that is not respectful. The director could have avoided that.

The family man David (Rupert Evans) and his pregnant wife Alice (Hannah Hoekstra) buy an old house nearby a canal to raise a family of their own. Five years later, their son Billy is the pride and joy of the family. David works archiving and editing films for his partner and friend Claire (Antonia Campbell-Hughes). When she gives a reel of a 1902 footage to work, David learns that his house was the place of a violent murder. This discover haunts David that sees a stranger inside his house threatening his son. When he finds that Alice is cheating on him with her client Alex (Carl Shaaban), David sees the stranger killing Alice and becomes obsessed to find who the suspect might be. Meanwhile he becomes the prime suspect of the police with his disturbed attitudes.

"The Canal" is an ambiguous horror movie with the story of a man that has a breakdown after learning that his home was the place of a brutal murder in 1902 and that his beloved wife is cheating on him. The story of haunting, obsession and madness has a confused screenplay and slow pace. But the acting and the dark cinematography make worthwhile watching this movie with low expectation and have a surprise. The creepy conclusion is the ambiguity of the story. Was David really insane? My vote is six.

Title (Brazil): "O Canal" ("The Canal")