Review: The Atoning

(imdb.com)

Before services like Netflix and iTunes, it's imaginable that it'd be hard to review indie movies and compare them alongside far superior, more mainstream films. But, with so many horror films coming out on various streaming and VOD efforts, the excuses one could make for mediocrity grow thin. There are new horror movies out every week. There's big ones and small ones and pretty much everything in between, and despite these differences some excel in every category while others flounder. The Atoning does the latter.

Written and directed by Michael Williams (OzLand), The Atoning follows young parents, Vera and Ray, as they attempt to shield their son, Ray, from ghoulish things in the night. Family secrets, slamming doors and plenty of conflict keep are created to round out the film's haunted house and with varying success; these things do make what could have been a flat film into something maybe a little more bearable. The Atoning stars Virginia Newcomb (Peacock) and Michael LaCour (Texas Heart) as Vera and Ray, and Cannon Bosarge (Bonnie & Clyde) plays Sam.

In regards to the cast, there is something particularly grounded and normal in each of the actor's performances. Newcomb is sympathetic as the wife and mother who wants the best for her son and Bosarge certainly has at least some career ahead of him. LaCour comes off as the slightly weaker part of the trifecta, but he has moments of clarity. Williams also does a good job with the resources he has. It's simply shot, but in an industry of obsessively odd angles and insane camera shots, it’s almost relaxing to see something more plain.

These technical aspects are about all The Atoning has going for it. The scares are joltingly predictable. The dialogue is relatively flat and the family's troubles are never all that engrossing. Sure each cast and crew member probably is working their best, but it doesn't mean the resulting film is even remotely interesting or even worse, scary. When the big twist comes, it provides some new direction, but it’s done better before in other movies. The modern perspective change - while welcome - isn't fulfilling. It ends up being a melodramatic and rather odd turn that turns it away from the film's horror aspects.

The Atoning is a bland example of a film that is at its best, boring. Even with a creepy set of ghouls in the end, there's far too much painstaking done to keep viewers invested. If they make it to the end, they might be a little scared of the creatures, but not enough to make up for the long and arduous uphill battle it took to get there. 3 out 10.