Oddity – A Genuinely Scary and Unrelenting Ride

Oddity follows Darcy (Bracken), a self proclaimed psychic and blind collector of cursed items a year after her twin sister Dani (also played by Bracken) was brutally murdered at her remote country house that she had been renovating with her husband Ted (Gwilym Lee). Despite the lead suspect being dead, Darcy arrives at Ted and his new girlfriend’s door, convinced there was more to her sister’s death and brings the most dangerous items from her cursed collection to help her find out what happened to Dani. As a whole, the film is, without a doubt, one of the best horror films of the year and one all horror buffs should keep on their radars.

A genuinely scary, unnerving, and downright creepy horror thriller, it is best going into completely blind. Not only is it presented in a really unique way, its story goes in some surprising directions and features unexpected reveals. While the ultimate revelations at the heart of its mystery may not work for everybody, the film finds a way to hint at them early on in a clever way. A film that is very much a slow burn, its extremely slow and deliberate pacing may also turn some audiences off. However, expertly crafted by writer/director Damien Mc Carthy (in his sophomore feature), the payoff comes in the second half and is all the more effective because of the patient work it had done in the first half.

As proven by most modern horror releases, jumpscares can be hard to pull off in today’s day and age, yet Oddity has some of the best in recent memory. In this case, its jumpscares are absolutely terrifying, with a few in particular escalating to the point of pure nightmare fuel that is sure to stick with audiences long after the credits roll. Instead of turning to fake outs or cheap jumps, the film chooses real scares that will leave an impact. Also an atmospheric film, it utilizes its creepy mansion setting to its full potential through some fun gimmicks, one involving a camera that’s set up and paid off well. Meanwhile, its sound design is bone chilling, and its cinematography is stunning, using impressive long takes that highlights its mansion setting and making it that much more unsettling.

In terms of performances, Bracken gives a stellar lead performance and hold the film together in a dual role as Darcy and Dani while Gwilym Lee was quite solid as Ted. That being said, the only thing holding it back are its third act and overall structure. The film is told and structured in an odd way that comes off as jarring at first but thankfully that issue gets ironed out once it reaches the end where its sequences of events and how they were presented will start to make sense, but that methodology will lead to some initial confusion. In the end, its third act will arguably what most audiences will take issue with. It definitely takes some risks but depending on the audience, some may not see it in a positive light.

Oddity is a strong horror film that has seemingly come out of nowhere but is one that is definitely worth keeping an eye on. Though it might not be for everyone, and is definitely slower than most mainstream horror fare, it delivers a genuinely creepy ride that will get under your skin early on and continue to linger there long after watching.

still courtesy of IFC Films and Shudder

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Connor Carey

www.connorsmoviereviews.com/