Review of The Canal (2014) by A_So_Horror_Fan — 04 Jun 2015

The story is a strong, emotional character study that plays out in a melancholy way with moments of tense, chilling energy that seems to ripple through this creative nightmare. "The Canal" blends the concepts of cursed property, tragic lives, and horrendous past in a way that keeps you guessing. Well actually you start guessing midway through the film when suddenly more possible scenarios comes to light. It is still heavy with the paranormal, and keeps with a darker, more sinister tone. The acting is superb and the characters are so developed that you begin to feel for them - I was completely invested. Ivan Kavanagh as created a psychological labyrinth of horror, and tragedy that hooks you from the beginning, drags you through intense melodrama and confusion, then hits with some truly disturbing imagery and finality.

The special effects are so well done that you feel the moments of horror as readily as the characters do. There is a few moments when the paranormal trickery isn't quite as effective as most of the stuff in "The Canal" is, but in a market drowning in netherworld nightmares it is hard to make every paranormal gimmick hit home with the audience. The ghost-y stuff is surreal and chilling. True some of it has been seen before but the characters her help to really sell even the basic of effects. The soundtrack is filled with sorrow-filled instrumental music that is full of dread and despair and emotion. The ending is a bit cheesy and not very original. But it creates that moment of finality that actually brings the story out of the whole "guessing game" of "is he? or isn't he?" which takes over in the middle of "The Canal". I really enjoyed this film, it is dark, disturbing and entertaining.