Lovely, Dark, and Deep
February 23rd, 2024
MOVIE: LOVELY, DARK, AND DEEP
STARRING: GEORGINA CAMPBELL, NICK BLOOD, WAI CHING HO, EDGAR MORAIS
DIRECTED BY: TERESA SUTHERLAND
AMovieGuy.com’s RATING: 3 STARS (Out of 4)
Going camping or taking a walk in the forest is a risky activity. No matter how prepared or leisurely the saunter is, there is always a possibility of hurting yourself, approaching a wild animal, or something worse. In many ways, a walk in the forest could be comparable to being stuck in purgatory. Or at least that is what Teresa Sutherland equates it to in her spooky and mysterious film Lovely, Dark, and Deep. We follow a park ranger on her first few days, which sends her down a path, one which she may never return.
Lennon (played by the wonderful Georgina Campbell) is a quiet type. She keeps to herself and wants to focus on the orientation for her first day as a park ranger. There are some whispers in the air about one of the recent park rangers who has gone missing. It’s also the same post that Lennon will be taking over. She shares some polite conversation with her fellow ranger Jackson (Nick Blood) and then finds her spot. As the sun goes down, it’s not too soon before someone, or something is shaking her door, followed by strange occurrences like her radio going out. She begins to see that she’s become lost in the woods.
This is the first time directing for Sutherland but she also wrote another horror film The Wind. There are a few similarities between the two stories, one being about a woman alone in the planes of the Midwest, being surrounded by a demonic force, and fighting her mind. With Lovely, Dark, and Deep is also about a singular woman but instead of the dark forces surrounding her, this is a descent into a cold reality. It’s reminiscent of other films where the woods take on a life of their own. The Blair Witch Project or The Ritual comes to mind, but it’s not all the setting of the woods, but the way Lennon’s reality continues to shift. These are dark paths and nothing stays the same.
The only comfort for Lennon comes when she finally connects with Jackson, where her radio has been out, her flashlight continuing to flicker, and eventually, the question comes into play about what is reality. Sutherland succeeds most when she’s keeping us guessing, along with excellent use of the dark, which often hinders what we see but in this case, heightens our listening senses. The reality starts to hit where you question why anyone goes out into these woods in the first place, especially with other recent rangers going missing, but that would also hinder the movie from existing at all.
It becomes all about tone, tension, and setting. Lovely, Dark, and Deep certainly nails all of those assets. It also, once again, cements Georgina Campbell as a go-to for horror, where her resilience, and ability to portray fear becomes unmatched. Sutherland may want us to believe in an afterlife but it made me not want to go camping or even take a stroll in the woods for a very long time. Lovely, Dark, and Deep takes grip of you tightly and turns the forest into the last place you would want to go.
LOVELY, DARK, AND DEEP IS NOW PLAYING IN SELECT THEATERS AND AVAILABLE ON DEMAND.
3 STARS
Written by: Leo Brady
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