IMDb RATING
4.8/10
4.5K
YOUR RATING
In a remote Irish village, police are called to the scene of a bloody massacre, but they ignore the lone survivor's claim that the house was responsible for the carnage that killed her paren... Read allIn a remote Irish village, police are called to the scene of a bloody massacre, but they ignore the lone survivor's claim that the house was responsible for the carnage that killed her parents and brother.In a remote Irish village, police are called to the scene of a bloody massacre, but they ignore the lone survivor's claim that the house was responsible for the carnage that killed her parents and brother.
- Awards
- 3 wins & 2 nominations total
Steve Wall
- Matthew Collins
- (as Stephen Wall)
- Director
- Writer
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Featured reviews
In a remote Irish community, eleven-year-old Niamh is haunted by invisible forces. She and her family are attacked during the night and she's the sole survivor of the ensuing fire. She is taken in by her neighbors. Nobody believes her about the mysterious powers of the house. She finds strange occurrences continue to follow her and thinks that they are the results of her own tears.
It's a reasonable indie horror. There is only one truly compelling scene with the group of girls and the dolls. The movie basically follows Niamh but it doesn't make it particularly scary. It starts with the original family dealing with a haunted house and ultimately dying in a violent night. That's not that scary either. The last act devolves into messy story telling. Missy Keating does a good job in the lead. This indie horror is trying something interest but it doesn't all work and it's not that scary.
It's a reasonable indie horror. There is only one truly compelling scene with the group of girls and the dolls. The movie basically follows Niamh but it doesn't make it particularly scary. It starts with the original family dealing with a haunted house and ultimately dying in a violent night. That's not that scary either. The last act devolves into messy story telling. Missy Keating does a good job in the lead. This indie horror is trying something interest but it doesn't all work and it's not that scary.
There are worse ways to spend your time. 'Dark touch' maintains an unsettling atmosphere throughout its length, and is filled with intermittent moments of violence and blood. And... that's a movie!
Moments of acute fright for the characters are supposed to inspire the same in the audience, but we just don't feel it beyond the maintenance of the spooky-ooky atmosphere. It's just interesting enough to keep us watching, to see what happens, but it's not especially engaging.
The thing is that 'Dark touch' relies heavily on a trope we've seen many times before. For most of its length, that's about all there is to say. With about 15 minutes left it takes that familiar narrative thread in an extra dark, surprising direction - but then ends rather abruptly.
This isn't bad. But nor is it noteworthy enough to specifically recommend. 'Dark touch' is the sort of supernatural thriller to view if you can't decide on anything else, or want to watch something with limited time and aren't very particular.
Moments of acute fright for the characters are supposed to inspire the same in the audience, but we just don't feel it beyond the maintenance of the spooky-ooky atmosphere. It's just interesting enough to keep us watching, to see what happens, but it's not especially engaging.
The thing is that 'Dark touch' relies heavily on a trope we've seen many times before. For most of its length, that's about all there is to say. With about 15 minutes left it takes that familiar narrative thread in an extra dark, surprising direction - but then ends rather abruptly.
This isn't bad. But nor is it noteworthy enough to specifically recommend. 'Dark touch' is the sort of supernatural thriller to view if you can't decide on anything else, or want to watch something with limited time and aren't very particular.
I watched this at the Fantasy Film Festival in Stuttgart and the director was attending. I stayed through the movie (which was not easy at all) and was curious to see what the director had to say. Unfortunately (but somehow to be expected) she only confirmed what I already knew. It's unfortunate for the child actors, if they have to go through an (bad acting) experience like this.
On the other hand, as others have already stated here, there is not much acting going on in the whole movie. The clichés and the bad lines follow each other hand in hand. It is offensive to its own characters and to the viewers nerves and stomach. Yes horror movies have people do stupid things, but denying yourself (and the audience) even what you saw with your own eyes goes too far. A shame, because underneath it all, there is a Carrie like vibe, that could've been a really good movie ...
On the other hand, as others have already stated here, there is not much acting going on in the whole movie. The clichés and the bad lines follow each other hand in hand. It is offensive to its own characters and to the viewers nerves and stomach. Yes horror movies have people do stupid things, but denying yourself (and the audience) even what you saw with your own eyes goes too far. A shame, because underneath it all, there is a Carrie like vibe, that could've been a really good movie ...
**Spoilers ahead**
It's clear from many of the other reviews, as well as the film's unfairly low rating, that a good percentage of today's audiences remain uncomfortable with ambiguity and lack of closure. I for one think these qualities are sorely lacking in modern film, and desperately needed in greater abundance in the horror genre in particular. Yes, it might have been nice to get some "origin event" or background on/explanation of her powers (and what's the deal with that whistling trick?), but this is not a film concerned with plot. Instead it is much more focused on capturing the horror inherent in its primary POV--the paranoid, emotionally detached, and deeply disturbed perspective of an abused girl. Leaving the audience in the dark, so to speak, with regards to exactly what is going on and why is in perfect keeping with that aim. With that said, I did think it went overboard in the final scenes, and that the addition of her two sidekicks was unnecessary. Nevertheless, I still rate it a worthy addition to the sub-genre of horror ("Carrie", "May", "Alice, Sweet Alice", etc.) that successfully evokes extreme unease from the fragile and volatile psyche of a damaged little girl.
It's clear from many of the other reviews, as well as the film's unfairly low rating, that a good percentage of today's audiences remain uncomfortable with ambiguity and lack of closure. I for one think these qualities are sorely lacking in modern film, and desperately needed in greater abundance in the horror genre in particular. Yes, it might have been nice to get some "origin event" or background on/explanation of her powers (and what's the deal with that whistling trick?), but this is not a film concerned with plot. Instead it is much more focused on capturing the horror inherent in its primary POV--the paranoid, emotionally detached, and deeply disturbed perspective of an abused girl. Leaving the audience in the dark, so to speak, with regards to exactly what is going on and why is in perfect keeping with that aim. With that said, I did think it went overboard in the final scenes, and that the addition of her two sidekicks was unnecessary. Nevertheless, I still rate it a worthy addition to the sub-genre of horror ("Carrie", "May", "Alice, Sweet Alice", etc.) that successfully evokes extreme unease from the fragile and volatile psyche of a damaged little girl.
Dark Touch looks like a rework of Stephen King's Carrie, except it's more keen at the themes of suffering with abusive parents. Even though that this is a horror movie, it is at its most interesting when it deeply focuses on the main character dealing with her trauma. The supernatural elements only becomes the allegory of her feelings against the violence she faces at home. The narrative can get a little clunky and once it gets hateful at the third act, things felt sort of incoherent. Still, Dark Touch offers a compelling core that keeps it from being like any generic horror film we usually get these days.
The movie is pretty slow, while it satisfyingly shows enough disturbing violence, the movie is more concerned at the traumatized young girl who is unable to overcome on what she was treated by her family. We often just see the motions of her new life trying to fit in to a normal new family and visiting some therapy. The final note of the movie seems to indicate that this is a personal message against child abuse from one of the filmmakers. It's quite compelling when it keeps things grounded, the girl's supernatural abilities is only a symbolism of her anxiety and a growing tension of harming the people who cares for her. Apart from that realism and analogy, the movie becomes sort of clunky at its horror movie elements. This as well sets up to an ending that has an obvious meaning, but felt a little unfitting to what has accomplished. As a result, it looks glorious to those who agree with its sentiment, but also disappointing for how much better it could have been.
The movie still deserves a lot of credit. As much as there are characters dying violently, the movie doesn't try to make that the whole point of it all. It doesn't even bother explaining the origins of Niamh's curse. What's important here is to portray the terrible effects of abuse to a child. The movie brings a stunning cinematography that reflects their world's melancholic atmosphere. Young Missy Keating does fine as Niamh. Her limited expressions do work for hiding the pain of her character. Better are the supporting who decently back her up.
Dark Touch is alright, there is a potential of a better movie that may become an excellent allegory, but it's still difficult to explain what to exactly feel about the third act. It's probably to add more camp since it doesn't offer much horror within its storyline, or the filmmakers just hate child abuse too much that it has to take it that far. Wasn't her telekinetic powers already enough for their consequence? And it's also a pretty compelling one if you think about it. The point is, the conclusion just doesn't quite fit in the process, as it largely shifts the tone. But the movie has a clear statement, and I think that's enough for it. Horror fans may appreciate its bloody death scenes, though that's not exactly what this movie is about, the movie just could have been tighter in its messaging. There is an absolute reason why we must hate child abuse, but out of caricatures, too much hate really affects the experience.
The movie is pretty slow, while it satisfyingly shows enough disturbing violence, the movie is more concerned at the traumatized young girl who is unable to overcome on what she was treated by her family. We often just see the motions of her new life trying to fit in to a normal new family and visiting some therapy. The final note of the movie seems to indicate that this is a personal message against child abuse from one of the filmmakers. It's quite compelling when it keeps things grounded, the girl's supernatural abilities is only a symbolism of her anxiety and a growing tension of harming the people who cares for her. Apart from that realism and analogy, the movie becomes sort of clunky at its horror movie elements. This as well sets up to an ending that has an obvious meaning, but felt a little unfitting to what has accomplished. As a result, it looks glorious to those who agree with its sentiment, but also disappointing for how much better it could have been.
The movie still deserves a lot of credit. As much as there are characters dying violently, the movie doesn't try to make that the whole point of it all. It doesn't even bother explaining the origins of Niamh's curse. What's important here is to portray the terrible effects of abuse to a child. The movie brings a stunning cinematography that reflects their world's melancholic atmosphere. Young Missy Keating does fine as Niamh. Her limited expressions do work for hiding the pain of her character. Better are the supporting who decently back her up.
Dark Touch is alright, there is a potential of a better movie that may become an excellent allegory, but it's still difficult to explain what to exactly feel about the third act. It's probably to add more camp since it doesn't offer much horror within its storyline, or the filmmakers just hate child abuse too much that it has to take it that far. Wasn't her telekinetic powers already enough for their consequence? And it's also a pretty compelling one if you think about it. The point is, the conclusion just doesn't quite fit in the process, as it largely shifts the tone. But the movie has a clear statement, and I think that's enough for it. Horror fans may appreciate its bloody death scenes, though that's not exactly what this movie is about, the movie just could have been tighter in its messaging. There is an absolute reason why we must hate child abuse, but out of caricatures, too much hate really affects the experience.
Did you know
- TriviaThird feature film by French director Marina de Van.
- How long is Dark Touch?Powered by Alexa
Details
Box office
- Budget
- €2,729,542 (estimated)
- Gross worldwide
- $256,979
- Runtime1 hour 30 minutes
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 2.39:1
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