Directed by Sonny Mallhi, written by Mallhi and Solomon Gray, Hurt’s general premise involves a solider returning home to his wife, and when both go to one of their favorite Halloween haunts, an evil follows them home. While this is a prominent part of the film, Hurt has a lot more going for it beyond this – particularly, it has a lot of emotional dread that makes for uncomfortable tension. When Tommy (Andrew Creer) returns home to his wife Rose (Emily Van Raay), one can sense a distance between the two; we are never given context as to how long Tommy has been away for, but the audience is able to grasp that these two are struggling in their relationship.

Part of the film’s uneasiness comes through in silence; when Rose and Tommy are together, the silence between them is sad. The stress in Tommy’s voice when trying to speak to or connect with his wife creates a heartbreaking air, an element that is only intensified as Rose strives to keep their spark alive. With the camera lingering on still moments between them – the sound of buzzing bugs in the background clashing against the silence – the film establishes this tremendous dread. This air is by far one of Hurt’s strongest qualities, for as the audience spends more time with Rose and Tommy, the atmosphere only grows, becoming more stressful, sad, and even angry at times.

Starting within act one and leading into act two, the couple decide to head out to one of their favorite Halloween attractions; Rose loves Halloween, and after Tommy has a minor breakdown in their home, he says the two of them should take off. The film does a great job of “showing and not telling,” as one is able to piece together that Tommy is struggling with PTSD. His internal struggles manifests in different ways, with Rose trying her best to focus on the good, even while her sister Lily (Stephanie Moran) attempts to point out that something is wrong with him.

There is one brief flashback to the couple’s wedding night where we see them laughing and smiling among loved ones. During their time at the haunt, the two are laughing and enjoying themselves. When taking these moments in alongside the more depressing scenes of the couple’s relationship, it is relatively easy to form a sincere care for these characters. Given the rollercoaster of sorts the film provides within acts one and two, I was rooting for Rose and Tommy to grab hold of that beautiful spark that was once in their relationship. However, Tommy ends up having an anxiety episode and leaves Rose – which is where the more explicit horror-driven portion of the film kicks in.

For a while, I thought Hurt may take the approach of “emotional horror” – conveying a narrative that is swaddled in mystique and aiming to unnerve the audience via tones of distress, uncertainty, and dread. To be fair, that’s a whole lot of what Hurt does – a big portion of it in fact. Yet, there is also a physical element in terms of stalker-esque horror. This stalker portion is a double-edged sword for the film – making for effective tension, but also contributing to the film’s one big issue.

Funny enough, the marketing behind Hurt mentions it is from the producers of The Strangers and The Dark And The Wicked – and just like those two films, Hurt is very much about using a mean spirited approach. But, whereas those other films use their mean-spirited narratives to say something, Hurt’s messaging is muddy at best, if not cruel and pointless at worst.

In its first and second acts, Hurt is a brutal film in terms of dreadful atmosphere and violence; hell, most of the physical violence happens off screen, but the sound design is so effective, one’s mind could run wild with upsetting possibilities. And when there is actual onscreen violence, it is horrifically gruesome. The dynamic between Rose and Tommy is gripping, offering viewers a plethora of feeling and creating a genuine means of connecting with them and hoping for their best. The atmosphere of Hurt is intriguing and chilling throughout, almost reaching a level of physicality in its tension.

There is so much going for Hurt, but its ending leaves a lot to be desired. The twist does little to liven the experience or provide anything of substance to the core relationship of the film. Where there is so much great character building, Hurt’s conclusion of violence has very little to say about the pain of its characters.

Hurt is now available on VOD outlets.