Here Before

SXSW 2021 Greetings again from the darkness. Grief can be the most powerful and dangerous emotion we experience as humans. Anger and joy come and go, but real grief seeps into our marrow and becomes part of our being. Writer-director Stacey Gregg wisely tackles the topic with the assistance of the always excellent Andrea Riseborough (a resume loaded with strong projects) as Laura, a mother who begins to believe that her deceased daughter Josie has been reincarnated as the new neighbors' daughter, Megan (Niamh Dornan).

Ms. Gregg expertly builds tension and doubt through the film's first half, and throws a terrific curve ball in the final act ... one I kick myself and applaud the filmmaker for not seeing it coming. There is an awkwardness between the two families forced together by a shared dwelling wall. That awkwardness only builds as Laura continually oversteps boundaries when it comes to Megan, who seems to know entirely too many details when it comes to Josie's death.

Megan's parents, Marie (Eileen O'Higgins) and Chris (Martin McCann), are from a different socio-economic class than their neighbors, and the uncomfortable connection extends to Laura's husband, Brendon (Jonjo O'Neill) and son, Tadhg (Lewis McAkie). Whether it's in the front yard, at school, or the grocery story, each time these families cross paths leaves us with weird vibes and feeling more confused. Is something supernatural at play here?

The cinematography from Chloe Thomson is superb, and composer Adam Janota Bzowski is pitch perfect is giving us just enough at the right moments. Set in Belfast, this is a gripping thriller with terrific performances throughout. Stacey Gregg makes it look all too easy with her first feature film.

When a couple and their young daughter move in next door, Andrea Risborough, whose own daughter died years before, starts taking an interest in the girl and begins to believe that she may actually be her daughter.

Fascinating drama / thriller centred around motherhood and the loss of child. What holds this together do well is that you're never entirely sure where this is going. Is she just losing it following the loss of her daughter or is there something supernatural going on and why is the girl seemingly equally interested in Risborough? That it gets through all this mystery and comes up with a solid, convincing conclusion is to its great credit. Everyone in it acts very well, but of course Risborough is top of the pops here and gives a delivers a great turn, carefully avoiding endless, over the top melodrama. Definitely worth catching.

Here Before: A young family move in next door to a somewhat older settled couple. The new family have a young daughter Megan (Niamh Doran) who reminds next doors Laura (Andrea Riseborough) of her deceased daughter Josie. Megan remembers events from Josie's past, at first mundane things but it moves on to specific strange memories. Megan recalls being in the graveyard, items in the playground which were removed years before. Laura's husband Brendan (Jonjo O'Neill) ties to get her to accept that Megan is not Josie, he still grieves over the loss but handles it better than Laura. Laura's obsession grows causing Megan's mother Marie (Eileen O'Higgins) to tell her to stay away from Megan. Megan however now claims that she is Josie. This would be a case of Dybbuk rather reincarnation as Megan is the age that Josie would be now. A sense of apprehension builds as the film unfolds, st on the semi-rural outskirts of Belfast the houses back on to a hill which is mist and rain covered much of the time. Indeed the rain is constant in this film adding to the bleak mood. The sound mixing is excellent as you hear trees creak over foreboding music adding to the eeriness of scenes. The intensity of Andrea Riseborough's portrayal of Laura is central to the narrative with great performances from Naimh Dornan and Lewis McAskie as Laura's son Tadgh who clashes with Megan. Maybe the script or direction wobbles a little with the denouement but this is an unsettling psychological thriller. Written and Directed by Stacey Gregg in her directorial debut. 8/10.

The acting, the mood, the cinematography... is superb. There is not much going on to be honest, but I actually loved the first 2/3 because the small details were clever, and tensions felt very real. I don't mind a slow burn when it's so well executed. For me, the" twist" ending was the let down. The movie is rather slow, and it way too much to unpack in the last 15 minutes, felt rushed and hard to swallow. The more I think about the ending, the more it really doesn't make much sense, and contrasts a lot with the rest of the movie that feels mature and believable. Still, reminds me a bit of "Birth" with Nicole Kidman... Not a great movie, but it kind of sticks with you.

If you read the synopsis, you know what this is about. There is a twist here but i didn't like it, it came out of nowhere. Therefore, i didn't like the ending.

Up until the twist, it's watchable but still slow & dragging. And for a 83 minutes movie, this doesn't look good.

It is not a bad movie, the actors are good, and maybe some people will like the ending. If you are in the mood for a slow mystery/drama (With emphasis on "drama"), maybe you will like it more than me.