The Ghoul

A soaring triumph of the cinematic imagination, conspicuously gifted first time feature director, Gareth Tunley's audaciously inventive, compellingly strange, reality-warping psychodrama,'The Ghoul' is a divinely disturbing, almost wholly interior Detective story that teasingly opens up a perception tweaking wormhole of cans, and, perhaps, if fellow agitators, Ken Russell or Donald Cammell had turned their mischievous Mise-en-scène to creating a more psychotronically-inclined Scandi-Noir it just might resemble something like 'The Ghoul'.

Both text, earnest performances, and filmmaking are all of an exemplary standard, and the dizzyingly off-kilter journey into Chris's (Tom Meeten) increasingly metaphysical madness happily proves to be a rewardingly convoluted one! Tunley's theologically trippy, deliriously circuitous, starkly intimate nightmare is moodily set to a spare, yet immersive score by composer, Waen Shepherd. Fans of 'Enemy' (2013), 'Predestination' (2014), and the similarly tweaked, 'The Rambler' (2013) are sure to find The Ghoul's assured transport into a palpably tormented mind scape not only intriguing, but one that provided a rewardingly oblique conclusion. I went into 'The Ghoul' not knowing quite what to expect from it, which ultimately made this uniquely inward experience that much more thrilling.

I 'get' what this film tries to do, I just don't like it. Someone was quoted as saying it could stand alongside David Lynch's 'Lost Highway', but I disagree. The term 'Lovecraftian' has been used many times in recent years to describe many films, but few truly are. 'The Ghoul' is most definitely Lovecraftian, and it has some excellent aspects; the acting is solid, as is the cinematography. The story leaves a lot to be desired however, and as I mentioned, I 'get' it, but I don't like it.

This film is disjointed and awkward in its flow, which was likely intentional, however it doesn't serve the film. In the end it left much to be desired. In the beginning you're loving it, in the middle you're excited to see where it's going, but by the last bit you're saying, "This can't really be it, can it?!" All in all, this film absolutely has the feel and look of a Lynch-made masterpiece, but almost none of the substance and (dare I say) the dazzle of one such as 'Lost Highway' - to which it's been compared.

On the one hand, I loved (really loved) how it portrays a depressed man in such a gritty and realistic way. But on the other hand, it felt lacking and failed to climax into anything that's anywhere near greatness. Not a complete waste of time, and it may very well be enjoyed by some, but for me this fell far short of my initial expectations which the opening scenes gave rise to - 6 out of 10.

Just watched a bizarre mind bending thriller "The Ghoul", that is not a horror film, although by the title, you might think so. This movie is just as much reality in the non linear plot, as it is just a fantasy going on in the lead character's mind. Don't expect me to explain it, one reason, many have compared it to David Lynch's "The Lost Highway", which I don't agree. I was able to follow it, if that is possible, by figuring what is really going on, and what is just a figment of the lead character's mind. That's not easy, but I like the very bizarre twists and turns the movie takes, to only end up where it started, but with many questions answered. You have to stay with it, and pay very close attention to the script as it moves along. I don't know if I would recommend it, it's like putting together a big puzzle, with a few pieces missing, that you eventually find laying on the floor somewhere.

This is a total mind f__k. Well written, well acted, and keeps you guessing until the end and beyond if you have imagination. Definitely not your run of the mill horror flick. Intensely riveting with it's twists and turns until your mind is following a mobius loop and trying to catch up with the writer.

Best pay close attention here, as not all is as it seems.

Twisty movies can be god fun, but as is the case with "The Ghoul", they can be quite unsettling. What starts out as a standard police drama slowly melts into an endless, dark, psychological journey, where everything is gradually turned upside down.

Not an easy watch, this: a dreamy, hallucinatory, moebius strip thriller with an agonizing performance from the spiralling lead (the excellent Tom Meeton). Filmed in dark, bleak confines, "The Ghoul" works, not inspite of it's micro budget, but because of it - relying on claustrophobic interaction from the players.

Fans of linear cinema need not apply, but those wishing for a jarring, thought-provoking experience will be rewarded.