Absentia (2011) review

Absentia (2011)

Review by George Elcombe

“Tunnel vision”

What is Absentia? Having watched the film, I checked Wikipedia. “In absentia” is Latin for "in the absence". 

Now I'm not the biggest fan of horror movies. Mainly because they are predictable, generic and don't scare me. It’s all about drops, payoffs and foreboding. Paranormal Activity (2007) made me jump, but I never lost any sleep over it.

However I like to go into watching horror films without knowing anything, which worked a treat for Cabin in the Woods (2012) and I am doing the same for this movie.

The DVD cover is similar Quarantine (2008) which shows a woman being dragged away. They stupidly used the final shot of Quarantine (2008) for its cover thus devoiding it all thrills towards the central character, but thankfully this image does not happen in this movie and is spoil free. So, how can I review this with out spoiling anything? Lets try.

Plot: pregnant Tricia is still holding out hope that her husband Daniel may still be alive after being missing for 7 years. Her sister Callie comes to stay to help her move on and declare him legally dead: in absentia.

However, Tricia is having visions of Daniel and Callie is being drawn to a mysterious tunnel near Tricia’s house which may be connected to a series of unexplained disappearances.

This film is interesting and takes the slow burn route with a few shocks. One shock I should have seen coming, but didn't, and at that point I became interested.

It has horror staples: haunted house, a pale ghost-like-thing, night visiony shots in a bedroom, two sisters and a mystery which slowly draws you in.

So far, so clichéd, low budget and the actress playing Callie can’t act very well. It’s obvious that the ‘ghost’ is of Daniel, but it doesn't help that he looks like Sheldon from The Big Bang Theory.

It’s also obvious who the father of Tricia’s baby is but all this is irrelevant after the 40 minute mark. Then things get interesting.

SPOILER ALERT!

Are you ready? Daniel is alive and it's now not another ghost story but a monster movie. I loved how they dealt with this. Why? Because they showed very little of the creature. It looked like practical effects with little or no CGI, just clever framing and use of the dark. I love this. The mind can create anything scarier that what’s on screen. Once you see something full frontal and especially if it’s shiny CGI, then it’s not scary. Just compare the 1982 and 2011 versions of The Thing to see my point. Actually, just watch the 1982 version.

END OF SPOILERS.

So it turns from generic horror to a thriller mystery, utilising drops, payoffs and foreboding until coming full circle at the end. That doesn’t mean that everything’s wrapped up though. I did like how the film dealt with flashbacks and ‘what if’ alternatives created in the characters heads. The events could just be made up, or it could be a more sinister reality. The film deals with how we come to terms with loss and traumatic events, how we reach for answers, understanding and closure.

The DVD menu is good and doesn’t show a lot, and doesn’t spoil anything, just a woman jogging through a tunnel. Both Harry Potter 5 (2007) and Harry Brown (2009) featured horror in a tunnel and admittedly tunnels can be an intimidating place.

I like the moody minimalist sound track but 5.1 wasn’t the default audio option on the review disk, I only discovered this after I watched the film so may re-watch it again to get the full effect. No extras were included on this disk but I would like to see a documentary on the making and funding of this low budget indie film. The legendry Kim Newman praises the film on its cover, so I would love a 5 minute interview with him discussing the film and its place within the modern horror genre.

Good horror is all in the foreboding and misdirection to achieve chills and scares. This film has it. And it doesn’t explain what or why the events are happening. It has no reason, a speculated origin and unknown motives which are all mysteries the minds of the audience will question.

An impressive and engrossing tale which is the best independent horror film I have seen in a while. For those who have seen it all and for those who haven’t.

6 out of 10

If you like this try:

Jeepers Creepers (2001)

Paranormal Activity (2007)

The Ring (2002)