The Piper

Erlingur Óttar Thoroddsen must be commended, for he has written and directed a most intriguing adaptation of "Rattenfänger von Hameln."

The detail that affected me most while watching the film was the death of Julian Sands, who was in fact British and lived in England, while hiking in the San Gabriel Mountains in the United States, where he was for the filming of this film... The film is not to blame, of course, but Sands was an actor I was most fond of.

I learned of the film thanks to a list by my dear Brett Petersel, I suspect its global promotion was poor, which is why it is so underrated.

Yes, it is not a cult classic, but it is an undeniable truth that it is a production that will satisfy horror lovers.

This film promises an intriguing blend of horror and music but fails to strike the right chords to create a memorable melody. Directed by Erlingur Thoroddsen, this adaptation of the German legend of the Pied Piper of Hamelin gets lost in predictable passages and clichés, missing the opportunity to build true tension and emotional engagement. At the heart of the story is Melanie, a young composer played by Charlotte Hope, who strives to fulfil her dream in the orchestral world while worrying about her deaf daughter, Zoe. However, when Melanie stumbles upon a mysterious score from a deceased colleague, a chain of dark events unfolds, jeopardising not only her career but also her daughter's life. One of the main challenges of the film is its predictability. From the opening scenes, the direction in which the plot is heading becomes apparent, depriving audiences of the suspense and unexpected twists that characterise great horror works. The dynamics of the characters, though well-performed by actors like Julian Sands and Charlotte Hope, fail to lift the film from its conventional plotlines. Moreover, despite the title suggesting a strong connection between music and horror, this synergy is not fully utilised. While Christopher Young's soundtrack is well-executed and contributes to creating a tense atmosphere, the deep and sinister link between music and evil that could have elevated the film to new heights of terror is missing. Another critical point is the lack of development of the proposed themes. Although the concept of using music as a vehicle for forbidden ideas is intriguing, the film fails to fully explore this possibility, limiting itself to superficial hints that are never fully realised. However, not all is lost in "The Piper". Some visual sequences are well-crafted, with cinematography that creates a dark and unsettling atmosphere. In particular, the design of the Piper himself is fairly successful, although his on-screen moments are too limited to fully appreciate the impact. "The Piper" is a film that promises much but delivers little. While it has some positive elements, such as the performances of the actors and the visual atmosphere, it fails to overcome its fundamental flaws: a predictable plot, underdeveloped characters, and a superficial use of the proposed themes. For more discerning horror enthusiasts, it may be a disappointment.

Now, I sat down to watch the 2023 horror movie "The Piper" solely because it was a horror movie that I hadn't already seen, much less actually being familiar with.

But what a surprise I was in for here, I didn't know that the movie was starring Julian Sands. So when he showed up on the screen, imagine my surprise to see my favorite actor popping up on the screen unbeknownst to me. And with "The Piper" being one of the last movies that he worked on before his disappearance and death, that just makes sitting through this 2023 movie from writer and director Erlingur Thoroddsen all the more special.

The narrative in the movie was okay. I mean, it wasn't a particularly overly scary storyline. But writer Erlingur Thoroddsen put together a fairly entertaining script for the movie, based on the classic tale "The Flautist of Hamelin", but of course in an updated and modern setting. The ending of the movie was, somewhat anti-climatic and felt rather rushed, and that sort of took away from the overall impression of "The Piper".

I wasn't familiar with the cast ensemble, aside from Julian Sands, but I will say that they had an interesting and talented cast ensemble for the various roles and characters in the movie. I had not stumbled upon Charlotte Hope before this movie, but she certainly carried the movie quite nicely with her performance.

Visually then "The Piper" was okay. It was not a movie that relied heavily on an abundance of special effects, which in itself was a good thing. But the special effects that were utilized in the movie worked out well enough, and certainly brought flavor to the overall impression of the movie. However, personally I wished that the Piper creature would have been given more on-screen time, because it was just a shame that it was hardly in the movie. But of course that is a matter of preference, whether or not you want an abundance of screen time for a creature in a movie or not; needless to say that I do enjoy that.

The music throughout the course of the movie was good. And the concerto music that the movie revolved around certainly was haunting and memorable.

I found that "The Piper" was a good attempt at recreating a take on the classic tale, however, the movie ended up being somewhat bland and rather forgettable.

My rating of "The Piper" lands on a five out of ten stars.

I didn't think too much about watching this one especially after I saw the late great Julian Sands name on the poster. It is a classic horror story with a twist and a few Lovecraftian overtones that will please the fans of the king of cosmic horror. The movie starts at a steady pace by laying down the story and various players, quite atmospheric at times and tries to keep the mystery in check for as long as possible. After a while, the plot becomes apparent but this does not hurt the pace and there are a few surprises in store. The ending was a bit too "happy" and convenient for its own good, but overall this was a good movie that tries to honor older horror movies while keeping in touch with the present. Not a masterpiece but a solid effort that makes up an entertaining watch for horror fans.

Well, The Piper wanted to be a good movie, with its own plot and development, reaching to a nice climax and delivering all that it could.

Sadly it came off as boring and unsatisfactoring, it did try, but never quite delivered a punch. A few swings, some effort, sweat, simply put - unoriginal.

A movie like so many others before it, with a mytical creature, some supernatural elements and that is all. The creature itself makes very few appearences and it's not because it wanted to have that Jaws effect, but because the script didn't know what to do with it. Perhaps it relied on its third act, which does deliver a little but too little too late.

All in all, not a movie I'd recommend, I think it could and should have been better.

Cheers!