Review: Nails

(imdb.com)

Whether snowed in at an empty hotel, stuck on a ski lift or trapped within an elevator, horror movies have made the most out of stationary locations. Often creating a sense of claustrophobia, audiences cringe at the inescapable horrors that surround these films' characters. From classics like The Shining to more modern fare like Devil, movies featuring a closed in location have proven to be effectively secluded - even in the middle of cities or busy buildings. The latest film to capture this is Nails.

Starring self-described scream queen Shauna Macdonald (The Descent) as Donna, Nails finds ghostly scares limited to a hospital bed. After a car accident, Donna becomes disabled and forced to rehabilitate in a spooky older hospital with a dark past. Each night, suspicious things happen around her and she is unable to defend herself or prove these issues. Like sleep paralysis, this movie uses her inability to move to create tension. It also stars Leah McNamara (Lily) as Donna's daughter, Gemma, Steve Wall (Vikings) as Donna's husband, and comedian Ross Noble as Donna's nurse and confidante.


Nails is impressively compact. It's the kind of movie that works because of its characters and scenery, not its story. Macdonald's performance elevates the one-room horror flick way beyond what this otherwise practical horror story could have been. Nails, the central antagonist is less the center than the background device at which the characters are propelled; only providing scares but never amounting more than the one dimension he began the story as. MacDonald in - all her horror glory is impressive - and deserving of a lot of credit. Without her in the hospital bed, this movie could fall apart easily. But, her ability to convey terror is as impressive as ever.


The most glaring flaw in Nails is its dependence on horror conventions. With plenty of bump-in-the-night scares and dreadfully empty stares into dark corners, Nails does little to create anything fresh. But, that doesn't mean it’s not still at least a little scary. Filled with deeply embedded tension and an atmosphere that is dreary and filled with shadows, Nails does succeed at creating horror, even if it’s not the type of horror that's quite uniquely terrifying.


Overall, for a typical ghost tale, this indie flick is impressively put together. There's a deeply unsettling atmosphere, some terrific acting and a well-established actress at the help. Nails may not be overly creative in its execution, but it’s an entertaining and relatively scary endeavor. Nails shouldn't be as worthwhile as it is, but the core of this film is haunting even if it fails to exceed expectations of what a ghost movie can be. 7 out 10.