Presence Review

“You have a presence here. It’s trying to figure you out. It’s trying to connect to you.” – Lisa

Frankly, by now, haunted house movies tend to be cliched, repetitive and unoriginal. I’ve seen so many that a lot of them blend in to each other, becoming a cinematic stew depending wholly on jump scares that hit and run, leaving no real lasting impression on the viewer. There’s little that’s new in this sub-genre these days. The last ones that I saw which showed me something completely new and unexpected were, I guess, Poltergeist (1982) and Paranormal Activity (2007).

Then there’s Presence, which I saw a few days ago. Once again, lured into the comforting darkness of the multiplex by a trailer which piqued my curiosity, while telling me next to nothing other than Lucy Liu was starring. Hey, it’s January, a typically low month for releases and so far, we’re 1-1 with Nosferatu and Wolfman. So, if there’s a third horror movie on screen, it’d be rude not to attend, right? Besides, Lucy Liu.

What I got was so much more than I’d anticipated. So, so much more. In fact, I’d say that it’s the best haunted house movie since Poltergeist or Paranormal Activity, though it’s been years since I’ve watched Paranormal Activity because it un-nerves the crap out of me – so my high marks tend to be The Haunting (1963) and Poltergeist.

Essentially, Presence is kind of an enigma. It’s a slow burning, compelling movie that’s actually low on scares as such – you aren’t going to jump out of your seat at any point, but neither are you going to be looking away because the story is THAT strong, with some twists that you just won’t see coming.

It’s set in the modern day, in the suburbs. Our focus is on a typical, ordinary family. The Paynes are beset by the same kind of problems as most people. They’re not cursed, they haven’t bought a house built on an ancient Native American burial ground or anything like that – pure ordinariness. The mother is Rebekah (Lucy Liu), father Chris (Chris Sullivan) and teenage siblings Chloe (Callina Liang) and her older brother Tyler (Eddy Maday).

The parents have problems outside the home, these are mentioned but not explored and give a sense of realism that these are indeed normal, fully realised characters. The same is true of the siblings who just seem to needle each other by existing.

The film begins as the family move into their new home, unknowing they’re being watched by a spectral entity.

Okay, that sounds pretty standard so far. We’ve seen all this before, haven’t we? BUT there’s a huge creative twist here. The film is set entirely within the house until the closing scene – and our point of view is that of the Presence. We only ever see what it sees, through some really awesome Steadicam and drone work, giving the movie’s look a smooth, floating flow. I’ve never seen that done before. And director Steven Soderbergh deserves full kudos for this. It cuts down on visual effects and means that this movie was made for a budget of only two million dollars. No studio sets, the only name performer is Lucy Liu.

I said earlier that the film although a ghost story isn’t high on scares and this is true – but we’re not exactly talking Casper the Friendly Ghost here either. I know I previously crucified Wolf Man for being kind of hollow plot-wise, but this is a whole different ball game. It isn’t in the same barren ballpark as Wolf Man. This film excels in developing characters which include an eccentric psychic named Lisa (Natalie Woolams-Torres) but other than one revealing line of dialogue, which I won’t reveal here doesn’t take over the movie. But then, nobody really believes her. The other thing it has, which I guess should be a pre-requisite for all horror movies, is a growing intensity, which builds up until the end of the film.

The Presence seems to have an interest mainly in Chloe, who is still mourning the death of her best friend due to a drug overdose and is about to make a few unwise decisions herself, as well as being unwittingly manipulated into a far more sinister but all too human threat.

Ultimately, it’s a film that stays with you for a while, and is in a way heartwarming. Well worth watching.

Rob Rating = 10