Review of Marrowbone (2017) by Rebecca31 — 17 Jul 2018

A Gothic horror movie that had such promise and potential it's frustrating to see it fall into that pile of instantly forgettable horror movies. The annoying thing about The Secret of Marrowbone is the story was there, it was dark and had a different take on the typical haunted house movie. Unfortunately nothing else seemed to be working and I found myself just wishing it would end already.

As with most horror movies it begins with a family moving into an old creepy looking house. The Marrowbones are all set to start their new life, but the eldest child, Jack (George MacKay) must keep the death of his mother a secret until he turns 21 in order to make sure he won't be separated from his siblings. Yet their new house is not quite what it seems. And cue the ghostly activities and countless jump scares most of which have been spoiled by their own trailer. How many times have I said that while reviewing a horror movie? The Secret of Marrowbone moves at a slow pace, relying on the atmosphere to keep you engaged. Unfortunately it had no atmosphere. I sat there wishing I was reading this instead of watching it, at least that way I could erase the cheesy acting and the fact that it feels like a TV movie you'd tune into if you've nothing better to do. It moves from set piece to set piece in a series of choppy transitions, many of which don't make a lot of sense. Then there's a few scenes that are out of place altogether and yes I'm talking about that scene where yer man is standing on a cliff overlooking the beach in the middle of nowhere secretly watching yer man and yer one having a nice little date to which he practically turns green with envy. The story is the only thing going for it but I wasn't engaged and I wasn't scared. Not recommended, skip it.