The Second World War is starting to dominate thoughts, and a priest, Linus (John Heffernan) has taken over a new parish and has moved his wife Marianne (Jessica Brown Findlay) and her daughter Adelaide (Anya McKenna-Bruce) into a grand Gothic estate. Linus still can’t bring himself to sleep with his wife due to his devout theology, and alone in her room, Marianne hears strange noises and begins having hallucinations. While Adelaide plays seemingly innocently with her dolls, the house’s past begins to envelope their lives.
Bases on the oft-filmed Borley Rectory case, director Christopher Smith (Severance) manages to bring a fresh and often terrifying edge to the familiar story. Eerie mirror images and visions of creepy monks heighten the tension and palpable level of fear, but it’s down to the acting that makes The Banishing such an engrossing watch. Finlay and McKenna-Bruce are simply stunning. It’s particularly rare for a young actor to accomplish so much to sell the scares. The ever-brilliant Sean Harris (Possum) shines as Harry Price, the oddball spiritualist who knows the problems of the house, his beliefs being completely at odds with the religious sector. The screenplay – by David Beton, Dean Lines, and Ray Bogdanovich – adds some extra flourishes meshing the story with the rise of the Nazis. It’s become a cliché, but the house itself is a striking character on its own, brought to life by Sarah Cunningham’s striking cinematography, which explores every nook and cranny and draws us deep into the chilling heart of the story.
The Banishing is one of the best haunted house films we’ve seen for a while.
