Movies
[Review] ‘The Visit’: M. Night Shyamalan Makes Long-Awaited Trip Back to Effective Horror!
It’s been fifteen years since Becca and Tyler’s mother swore off her parents, forcing them to live their entire young adult lives without the presence of their Nana and Pop Pop. But that’s all about to change. They’ve waited long enough to learn more about their heritage, and they are determined to have a reunion. Especially now, with the recent abandonment of their father, it’s more important than ever call on the family tree, and the kids are demanding a visit out to the country to meet the old folks, and see the home that their mysterious mother grew up in. Sadly, all of their good intentions have gone to waste in this sour house. They may have gone to Grandma’s house looking for love and security in the form of baked cookies and long walks through the crunching snow, but all they find when they arrive is ruthless deception and justified paranoia.
At first it seems harmless; just a lonely old couple whose strange behavior can be attributed to their seasoned nature and prolonged stay in a remote area, away from the rest of the world. However, as the siblings’ vacation rambles on, each day seems more bizarre than the last. Odd events repeatedly occur, ranging from a frightening game of hide and go seek, to exaggerated expressions of “sundowning”; a sickness that plagues the elderly after the sun casts its last ray of light on the day. In their grandmother’s case, it makes her crawl around the house at night like a crazed animal on the prowl. Overjoyed with the prospect of pulling their family back together again, the children decide that this long-awaited regrouping is more important than questioning the antics of older citizens, and push any notion of misdoings out of their heads in the name of happiness. They’ll pay for their neglect.
M. Night Shyamalan makes his best film since Signs with horror-comedy mash up The Visit, a kooky, heartfelt, unsettling little piece of low budget gold that plays on our visceral fears of aging and death. Although the tone does seem at times like its bouncing off the walls as much as its central characters, oddly enough, it works. Nana and Pop-Pop make you laugh as much as they terrify you, which is due in large part to superb performances by long time stage actors Deanna Dunagan and Peter McRobbie. The pair that manages to make you feel guilty for feeling afraid when they flip the switch and becoming loving grandparents again, who are just acting weird because they’re old and happy to see their grandkids. With so much obvious compassion for their loved ones that have been hidden away from them for so many years, it’s hard not to sympathize with this sweet little duo, and it’s thanks to them that the audience, as well as the grandchildren, maintain the patience to see them through the rest of this unusual trip.
Kathryn Haun, Olivia DeJonge, and Ed Oxenbould all play their roles admirably, but in the end, it’s really Dunagan that steals the show, as the offbeat grandma that seems to still have a good heart hidden behind all of her frightening, outlandish outbursts. Without her, it would truly be a very different film.
Other than strong performances by the leads, The Visit is a success simply do to the fact that it’s Shyamalan getting back to basics on every respect. With its modest $5,000,000 budget, its absent score, lesser-known actors, found footage setup, single confined set, and even missing director’s cameo, The Visit feels more like an independent film made by an exciting new up-and-comer than a product of genre veteran M. Night Shyamalan, whose recent studio collaborations include names like Paramount and Colombia. Since his last few entries have been, kindly put, disappointing, The Visit is a breath of fresh air from a man who previously seemed like he had grown a little too comfortable in the lavish arms of large studio budgets. It’s nice to see him break away and do something a little more rough around the edges, and just get back to making simple, solid horror movies like he used to do.
I would have preferred for more sinister events to happen during the night scenes, and perhaps even some sort of payoff involving food because the grandmother is almost always seen cooking or baking something in the kitchen, but despite my grievances, I quite enjoyed The Visit. The combined humble qualities of the quiet, remote set location, the choice to use little to no props (aside from the cameras), small shooting spaces, stage actors, and down to earth story create a theatrical feeling characteristic of a sweet, spooky little play. Overall, The Visit is a strong step back in the right direction for writer/director Shyamalan, and a film that should be seen in theaters, preferably with a large, rambunctious crowd to make the experience all the more lively and dramatic.
In this day and age, the word “troll” is often used to describe various online nuisances. Yet as abundant and irksome as the modern troll can be, they aren’t usually as fearsome as their mythological counterparts. I’m not talking about the small and gentler versions that have become more common to see in media. No, there are much bigger and scarier trolls out there—and André Øvredal’s movie Troll Hunter is one of the best places to find them.
It doesn’t take long for Troll Hunter (or Trolljegeren) to dump the Blair Witch Project-esque setup and aim for something a lot fresher. The trajectory of the story is augmented by Otto Jespersen’s character Hans, the titular Troll Hunter. The second he comes barreling out of the deep, dark woods and shouts “troll” at the camera, this movie takes a turn into what feels like uncharted territory. Not only subject-wise, but also conceptually.
For fantastical and made-up subject matter in cinema, found footage is a fast way to add a guise of believability. After all, what we accept to be the most crucial aspect of documentaries—the truth—rubs off on pseudo-documentaries, despite our understanding of the pretense involved. That is what Øvredal delivered with Troll Hunter: a movie so convincing that some viewers wondered if trolls really do exist. So, had this been straightforwardly made, it likely wouldn’t have been as effective. Conventional narratives would be more inclined to treat something like trolls as flat out unreal, and never try to convince the audience to think otherwise.
Hans petrifies the three-headed Tusseladd troll.
The viewers, like the characters trailing Hans, are quickly thrown into the deeper end of that extraordinary story. They have to process all this new information while staying on the go. So, although there is no significant amount of meandering, narratively or physically, there is still a good amount of atmosphere, not to mention tension building. It’s never anything frightful, but then again, Troll Hunter isn’t your standard offering of horror; it’s more on the low end of the dark fantasy spectrum. We aren’t ever spirited away to a faraway world—we stay in rather familiar surroundings, as well as dip into those less so. The outcome is a movie where you’re constantly more in awe than in terror.
As fantasy fiction might do, Troll Hunter prefers not to deal with incredulity. There is no time to waste on doubt, as interviewer Thomas (Glenn Erland Tosterud), soundperson Johanna (Johanna Mørck), and cameraman Kalle (Tomas Alf Larsen) all follow Hans around, recording whatever this character is willing to reveal about his bizarre job. Of course, the Troll Hunter himself is not an open book; in that respect, the diegetic documentary fails to fully capture and unpack the more interesting of its two subjects. Yes, all those giant, monstrous trolls are indeed incredible, but understandably, your mind wanders to their pursuer. What kind of person signs up for this gig and then chooses to stick with it for so long?
Reviews have called out Troll Hunter for its lack of character development. In regard to Thomas and his fellow documentarians, that criticism is valid, but bear in mind, they aren’t the focus of the story, either. Meanwhile, Hans is a well-crafted character. At least better than first realized. Before he was introduced, Hans had already grown tired of the troll grind. Fed up with that low compensation for his services, resentful of the bureaucracy, and wanting to expose his employer on a large scale, Hans’ discontent is glaring.
Then there are those finer details about the Troll Hunter, such as that indifference to both the natural splendor of his everyday surroundings and the affections of an obviously smitten colleague, that also suggest some level of despondency. So it is fair to say this movie doesn’t feature any sizable growth for its characters; however, the namesake isn’t underwritten. No doubt, putting a real-life character like Otto Jespersen in that role is partly why Hans is so fascinating—maybe even relatable.
Otto Jespersen as Hans the Troll Hunter.
There is always a small risk whenever using the term “mockumentary” to describe a found-footage movie, as the word could imply humor where there is none. In the case of Troll Hunter, the term’s usage is appropriate. Some folks have claimed the English-dubbed version has the more comedic tone, however, the Norwegian cut isn’t exactly humorless. Apart from the trolls’ absurd appearances, this is a movie where the characters nearly choke on the monsters’ farts, and Christians are like walking targets. Hans’ complete apathy towards everything is another cause of laughter. Overall, the comedy is intentionally dry and inconsistent. Unfunny, though? Absolutely not.
In a movie where endemic creatures are maltreated, as well as disavowed from living freely and peacefully, it’s hard not to notice the ecological message buried beneath the story. In addition to that is the unmistakable political satire. There is this whole business about intrusive and unsightly power lines—like trolls, they’re big blemishes on the land—that leads to what is perhaps the movie’s funniest moment. The scene in question is that one where certain electric lines, the ones secretly being used to keep the trolls at bay, go in a loop and don’t actually send power to any residents. Yet the monitors of said lines don’t find this at all weird. So it stands to reason that Øvredal was having a go at those who accept the government’s doings without question.
Looking past the fact that trolls aren’t actually real, this movie is an enlightening source of information. And not just for international audiences; Norwegians, too, get schooled about their homeland’s own mythology. It’s also evident from everything on screen that Øvredal and his crew were enthusiastic about the topic. The creature designs are the most indicative of that zeal; those imaginative yet myth-accurate manifestations are equally amusing and grotesque. One second you’re laughing at their phallic noses, the next you’re white-knuckling during a hairy sequence. Most surprisingly is how well the trolls’ visual effects hold up after fifteen years. It’s not all spotless, but on the whole, they remain impressive.
Vouching for a mockumentary about trolls isn’t easy, but those who do come around and give it a shot will more than likely be grateful for the recommendation. For Troll Hunter is a real find in that vast and varied genre we call “found footage“.
A bridge troll reaches up for food and finds Hans decked out in armor.
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