Absentia

Summary: Mike Flanagan's first horror feature is an effective psychological thriller, packed with surprising moments, good performances and clever scares. 80/100 (B+)

Tricia's husband Daniel has been missing for seven years. Her younger sister Callie comes to live with her as the pressure mounts to finally declare him dead in absentia. As Tricia sifts through the wreckage and tries to move on with her life, Callie finds herself drawn to an ominous tunnel near the house. As she begins to link it to other mysterious disappearances, it becomes clear that Daniel's presumed death might be anything but natural. The ancient force at work in the tunnel might have set its sights on Callie and Tricia... and Daniel might be suffering a fate far worse than death in its grasp. Absentia is a great psychological horror film that will leave you guessing about what was real and what was not. It is a very well done low-budget flick, superbly acted, original and sinister.

Absentia is a strangely original movie. I really liked all of the psychological aspects of it. Flanagan surprises us with a bunch of unexpected scares, and some relentless drama. Also, the acting was quite good. The film does not feel hampered by its extremely low budget ($75,000 US), all of the scares have quality. It is impressive how well this film is directed. The performances were great, and I cared about the characters. If you are a horror fan you should not miss this hidden gem. It is amazing what Flanagan can do with a micro-budget. In spite of a kinda boring musical score, I still loved Absentia. It is one of the most thought-provoking horror films I have seen, it deals with a very moving story that is painfully sad. The ending leaves some questions, but it makes the film even more debatable. (B+)

"Absentia" actually turned out to be a rather nice surprise of a movie. I must admit that I had expected somewhat more horror from it, whereas it turned out to be a character driven mystery instead. But still, it was quite nice.

The story is about Tricia Riley (played by Courtney Bell) whose husband Daniel Riley (played by Morgan Peter Brown) has been missing for seven years, and now ready to have the death certificate issued and brought the case to a closure, something unexpected happens...

The movie is slow paced, but that actually works out well enough in favor of the movie, as it helps to build the setting and set up the mood for the entire story. The director, Mike Flanagan, is great at adding little bits to the story while building up a good sense of mystery and dread, and at the same time leaving almost everything up to the imagination of the viewer.

"Absentia" was really brought to life on the screen by the people they had cast for the various roles. Sure this wasn't a major Hollywood production with an obscene amount of money put into the project, but Mike Flanagan proves that you don't need a ridiculously huge budget in order to make a memorable movie that sinks right in. So despite it being a smaller budget movie, the end result was far better than what I had expected.

If you like movies that are thick on suspense and a dire mood, then "Absentia" is well worth checking out. Don't watch this movie with the hopes or intentions to be scared out of your brain, because it is just not that type of horror movie.

I was thoroughly entertained by "Absentia" and I do love it when I happen to fall upon the odd movie here and there that is a gem in disguise. And it was a nice treat to sit in the dark and sort of being fed just enough information to make you start to think and try to figure out what was going on, and at the end being left in the dark to draw your own conclusions as to what was really going on.

Thumbs way up for "Absentia".

An early film from Director Mike Flanagan, ABSENTIA is about sisters Tricia (Courtney Bell) and Callie (Catherine Parker). Tricia has finally decided to have her missing husband declared dead in absentia, after 7 years. Unfortunately, it's not that simple, and bizarre circumstances unfold that point to something far more sinister than a disappearance.

Dark, mysterious, and, in spots, terrifying, this low budget film is evidence of what can be accomplished with some imagination and talent. While there are no big special effects, there is a well-written story, as well as great acting from the principal characters.

The strained yet close relationship between Tricia and Callie feels authentic, and their dialogue is natural / unforced. This makes the otherworldly threat they face seem more real, and in the end, more devastating. Ultimately, this is a tale of love and tragic loss, accentuated by horror. There's a tie-in to folklore that helps to flesh things out.

Creepy, disturbing, and satisfying...

While I try to be more lenient with Low Budget productions, I still try and give my honest opinion on what I saw. It mas made very well and all the actors did a fine job.. But for me suspenseful thrillers should keep building and then have a satisfying climax. Unfortunately Absentia does neither... It starts off by creating an eerie atmosphere, offers several paths to take, but then just keeps doing that same attempt to pull you in over and over.. Once you already "pulled" the audience in,, you should then take them on a wild ride forward, not keep repeating the previous premises till it's monotonous,,.. Anyway, it was okay for a single viewing and I do wish all involved the best of luck on their next adventure...

Last night, with not much fare on cable, I decided to watch Absentia. A recent horror film by Mike Flanagan.

First off let me start by saying that horror is my favorite genre. Not your "slasher" flicks though… but well crafted Gothic horror like Robert Wise's original THE HAUNTING.

Creepy atmospheric films that get you thinking and make the hairs on the back of your neck stand up.

You can read the synopsis here on IMDb, so I won't go into that. As far as reviews go, Variety couldn't have said it any better! (http://www.variety.com/review/VE1117945387/)

The low budget only proves that a cool story, some nice direction, well paced editing and a more than capable cast don't need to come from a big Hollywood studio… and they rarely do these days!

At times the scares are so subtle (ala the cult classic B film, "Let's Scare Jessica to Death") you won't believe your own eyes. Is Daniel really there or a figment of his wife's (played brilliantly I might add by Courtney Bell) imagination?.

The real standout here though is Mike Flanagan, the writer/director.

I await his next project with great anticipation! 8 out of 10 stars!

PS-Notice some of the character references to some horror director icons. Carpenter, Del Toro, Romero... :)