A flood of “elevated horror” in the last decade has provided genre audiences with a deluge of movies to binge, ranging wildly in quality. Towing the line between inspired or pretentious, many of these so-called “elevated” flicks fall into the latter category. Folk horror Lord of Misrule from producer/director William Brent Bell (Orphan: First Kill, Stay Alive) attempts to have a bit of fun with its premise despite aiming for a bleak cult-fueled atmosphere. The film never manages to overcome its jet-black sensibilities.
Beginning with (what else?) a wide array of bizarre folklore imagery, an eerie vibe permeates the film from the outset. No stranger to freaky visuals, director Bell does a great job of establishing the weirdness of the location and its inhabitants. Similar to Wake Wood or any other mythology-heavy brand of terror, this town is not at all what it appears to be on the surface. In the middle of the harvest festival, little Grace goes missing. Tracking down the daughter of the town’s new minister and her potential captor proves especially difficult.
Rebecca (Tuppence Middleton) and her husband, Henry (Matt Stokoe), head the search for their daughter; Rebecca discovers this small town made be hiding more than just a few secrets. Fourteen years prior, a little boy also went missing during the harvest festival. Demonic sacrifice and questionable rituals swirl around the couple. Who can they trust, if anyone? Who really took Grace, and what do they want?
Lord of Misrule has one exceptionally great sequence near the end that embraces the physicality of horror rather than the supernatural. Other than that, the film has a relatively slow build and languid pacing that may annoy less patient members of the audience. There needed to be a bit more to chew beyond vague mythology and solid performances—Ralph Ineson is particularly great as the father of the missing boy from years back.
The pain of losing a child has to be unbearable, let alone the mystery of not knowing exactly what may have happened to them. Had Lord of Misrule mixed this notion better with its imagery and haunting elements, Bell would have elevated this “elevated horror” attempt. Instead, it underwhelms and meanders. By the time a visceral gut-punch occurs, the momentary excitement does not make up for a misguided mishmash of genre ideas—more miserable than Misrule.
Give praise to the Lord of Misrule when it prepares for the harvest on December 8th, in select theaters and video on demand.
2 thoughts on “Film Review: Lord of Misrule”