Serious Horror at its Best
It’s hard to watch a movie about young girls being taken from their families and forced into prostitution, but somehow director Peter Hyett manages to approach the subject matter in such a delicate way that it isn’t exploitive, even in the moments of extreme violence.
After her mother is murdered, a deaf mute girl is taken and held captive in a home where girls are drugged, bound and offered to men for a price. The man in charge takes a liking to her and allows her to care for the other girls. When the men who killed her mother shows up, she takes refuge in the crawlspaces behind the walls of the house to plan her revenge and hopefully escape.
The Seasoning House is probably the most serious horror film I’ve seen in a long time. And don’t mistake that for a bad thing. Once in a while we need movies like this to remind us that horror doesn’t always need comedy, and it also doesn’t always need over-the-top gore just for gore’s sake. Don’t get me wrong, this movie has some of the most impressive special effects around, but they’re done in such a way that not one drop of blood feels unnecessary to the story. In that way, it reminded me a lot of Guillermo del Toro’s Pan’s Labyrinth, minus all of the fantasy elements, but very similar in tone and execution.
Prepare yourself for a harrowing ride if you decide to check out The Seasoning House. It might just make you wish you could somehow unwatch it right afterwards. Highly Recommended.
Availability: Netflix US, Netflix Canada.
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