Take a Swim and Die
I read about The Canal in one of those “Must Watch” lists of horror movies available on Netflix. I’d added it to my queue but never got around to watching it, until today.
After screening footage from 1902 of a real murder that took place in his home, film archivist David (Rupert Evans, Hellboy, Agora) begins a slow descent into madness. The disappearance of his wife leads local authorities to believe he may have something to do with it, until her body is discovered in the canal next to their home and the death is deemed accidental.
Directed by Ivan Kavanagh (The Fading Light, Tin Can Man), The Canal is a serious horror film about loss, sanity and obsession. The depiction of violence is brutal and there are even some terrifying moments that really caught me off guard. The final kill felt a little derivative of The Ring but a close-up of a living dead woman giving birth a few minutes later more than made up for it.
If you’re looking for a straightforward horror movie with great effects, good scares and a dark atmosphere, The Canal won’t disappoint. Recommended.
Availability: Netflix US, Netflix Canada
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