Fear runs in the family in the trailer for Smother, an Austrian supernatural horror film reminiscent of Relic.
Also known as Heimsuchung, the movie hits DVD and Digital on April 7 via IndiePix Films.
It follows recovering alcoholic Michi, who retreats to her estranged father’s isolated countryside house with her eight-year-old daughter, Hanna, hoping to mend the bond shattered after a drunk-driving accident.
But the quiet refuge quickly turns hostile, as long-buried memories surface, and whispers of Michi’s mother — who died by suicide in the house — begin to seep into every room.
Hanna starts sleepwalking. An eerie drawing of a woman in purple appears. Neighbors speak in riddles about a spirit that never left. As shadows move through the overgrown garden and night terrors escalate, Michi becomes convinced her mother’s presence is stalking them.
Haunted by visions and wracked with paranoia, she spirals back into alcohol, her grip on reality unraveling as fear gives way to rage. When Hanna nearly wanders into traffic during a midnight trance, Michi realizes the haunting is no longer confined to the house — it lives inside her.
Cornelia Ivancan, Lola Herbst, Lukas Turtur, Heinz Trixner, and Inge Maux star in the German-language film.
Writer-director Achmed Abdel-Salam makes his feature debut on the project. Lena Weiss & Eugen Klim of Glitter & Doom produce with Viktoria Salcher & Mathias Forberg of Prisma Film.
