"Hemmet" (a.k.a. "The Home") won a modest prize at the 25th edition of the Brussels' International Festival of Fantastic Films, and I think it truly deserves this token of recognition! This (mostly) Swedish production will probably not be the most groundbreakingly original and ultimately shocking movie you'll ever see, but it's definitely a very solid thriller/supernatural horror tale with a well-written script, intriguing lead characters, and more than a few effectively unsettling fright-moments.
Thirty-something Joel, who has serious identity issues himself, has the unthankful task to move his mother Monika from her house to elderly home with special healthcare. Monika had a stroke, and was even clinically dead for a while, so she can't live alone anymore. But there's something else and sinister, too. Monika is haunted by her dead violent husband/abusive father Bengt, and his terror is inflicted on Joel and others as well. Could it be that Bengt's vile spirit attached itself to Monika in the short period she was clinically dead?
The plot is slightly similar to "Flatliners", perhaps, given the element of being haunted and suffering from visions after crossing the medical line between life and death, but "The Home" certainly isn't a rip-off of that - or other - supernatural films. It's a powerful stand-alone thriller with relevant themes that hold a good balance between subtle disturbance and sincere drama topics (like ageing, grief, sexuality, ...). The performances of the lead actors and actresses are terrific, with also a honorable mention to Peter Jankert who's incredibly menacing - without even speaking - as the husband from hell.
