Les Fantômes du passé

Although people may approach it seeking a horror film, and despite having some paranormal elements to it, the movie is mostly a missing persons mystery. The film weaves two "main" storylines as well as two missing persons cases deftly into a film that culminates into a single picture in the end.

The characters are not really fleshed out more than they have to, which is a good thing, and the actors do a pretty good job bringing the characters to life, especially the psychiatrist.

There weren't much jump scares or purely horror scenes, and what little "scary" scenes did show up added to the atmosphere and mystery, and made sense to the plot and eventual background "mythology" of the movie. As such, this movie should be fine for people who aren't really into horror movies, if they can handle a pinch of supernatural as a part of the mythology instead it being intended purely for horror purposes.

The movie was pretty focused on the main story, and there weren't much side stories or unnecessary relationships, violence, intimate scenes, or anything that really distracted from the story for the sake of sensational viewing. The pacing was slow but steady. To be honest, it was so slow and steady that was almost beginning to suspect that the film would have disappointing ending, due to the relatively nonfluctuating levels of emotion or suspense. However, despite the the ending indeed being technically anticlimactic, I think it was indeed satisfying, resolving the main mysteries while still leaving room for thought and reflection.

I would definitely recommend this movie for anyone who likes mystery, and don't mind a teaspoon of spook in that.

It has beautiful scenery in locations seldom seen on film, but the story is too loose to develop any real tension. There's one effective jump scare, but that's it. And the confusing parallel timeline structure doesn't add anything to the drama. Best avoided.

This movie has a lot going for it. It has some truly creepy moments, very solid acting on everyone's part, moments of good scoring (despite some cliched choral passages), and a promising story line.

Unfortunately, for reasons I cannot understand, about two-thirds of the way through the script introduces a cliched, hackneyed domestic melodrama plot line which, while it does thematically connect with other aspects of the story, could have been dispensed with in favor of something less predictable and inane. I'm avoiding going into detail because I don't want to drop spoilers in case you decide to watch this movie. I myself have little patience for scripts that are inconsistent and which suffer under choices which the writer should have known were bad ones. The conclusion, while apropos of the story that precedes it, is also something we have seen time and time again in similar movies. It's frustrating to see what could have been and memorable movie become ultimately rather forgettable.

If you're hard up for a ghost story flick and you've seen everything else out there, I Remember You is probably worth a look, but it's not one that's going to be on my own re-watch list; which, for the sake of context, does include the likes of Ringu, The Ring, The Grudge (Japanese), Dark Water (Japanese), The Fog (original), The Haunting (original), The Innocents, Pulse and Retribution (both Kioshi Kurosawa), and the number of others that I watch repeatedly because they avoid most of the mistakes made by I Remember You.

A very moody film, that cuts back and forth between two storylines. And that makes it really interesting. Also the location of the one storyline is really setting the mood. While there are phantastical elements to it, I would argue that this is more of a thriller, rather than straight horror. But it does have quite a few "jump scares" and you might feel frighten from time to time.

If that sounds intriguing, believe me it is. It is also very well made. The acting is great, the script will keep you guessing what will come next and there are enough twists to keep you on the edge of your seat ... maybe even after the movie is over. The guessing part of it all is what makes it work the first time around. I haven't seen it a second time, but I'm sure there are things to discover and enjoy then too

The plot/story is based on Yrsa Sigurðardóttir's mystery novel, and so it has aspects of a good mystery and a ghost story. The screenwriters and the actors did a great job, and I didn't mind having to read the subtitles. Although, I did have to pay close attention throughout the whole film in order to understand the plot, which contains layers of complexity. In the end, it paid off because there are some very eerie, creepy scenes.

If you require a lot of blood and gore, then this may not be your kind of film. But if you enjoy good ghost stories with past history tied to the plot, then I definitely recommend it. "Chilly" might be a good word to describe the atmosphere of the film, not only because of the supernatural material but also because the Icelandic countryside looks quite chilly and remote.

Again, kudos go to all of the people who helped to make this film. I look forward to seeing future work from the director, Óskar Thór Axelsson.