Oculus

After a year of disappointing horror movies, 2014 is off to a good start. Oculus, a small-scale, psychological scare-fest, forgoes excessive gore, bad CGI, and self-aware meta-storytelling in favor of creepy atmospherics and stylish visuals. The story concerns a brother and sister who seek revenge on a malevolent supernatural force that resides in an antique mirror and, the siblings believe, caused their parents’ deaths. That’s the kind of old-school scary movie premise that’s been missing from cinemas in recent years. Director Mike Flanagan (who also co-wrote and edited) and cinematographer Michael Fimognari create a sumptuous but subtle visual look that’s far more effective than some of the recent prestige horror pictures like Stoker or Mama. The excellent cast all look and feel credible as a family. Especially strong are the female leads, former sci-fi TV stars Karen Gillan (Doctor Who) and Katee Sackhoff (Battlestar Galactica).  Unfortunately the heavy use of both flashbacks and dream sequences (or false reality sequences) muddle the viewer. This confusion often serves the film well, but in the end it does more harm than good. The final act of Oculus goes on too long act and doesn’t successfully build on the fear and tension so powerfully created in the first two thirds of the movie. Nevertheless, this film is well worth the ticket price, and I’m excited to see what these filmmakers do next.