Review of The Last Will and Testament of Rosalind Leigh (2012) by Mircea V — 02 Sep 2013

This was a pretty good horror movie I thought. It is one that does rely far more on its atmosphere to create a sense of horror rather than jump scares, and I thought it was done effectively. The movie does really take its time before the horror starts, close to about halfway through the movie before the horror really starts to pick up.

But I do think the movie has a taut atmosphere throughout, so it does keep you on your toes even if they're not constantly trying to 'scare' you. I did think the concept was interesting because the movie sees Rosalind Leigh, a religious fanatic voiced by Vanessa Redgrave, reading her last testament and throughout the movie you think that she's talking to her son, Leon, and talking about their relationship.

But there comes a point in the movie where you're doubtful about whether she's talking about her relationship with Leon or her relationship with god. At the end, with some of the things she says, you can figure out that she's talking about Leon, but MANY of the things she said could also apply to her relationship with god and I thought that added a little twist to the story.

If you watch the film thinking that Rosalind is talking about her relationship with god, it completely changes how you view the film and it becomes a movie about someone, in this case Leon, who has some very severe mental issues.

I think that adds a little depth to the movie that wouldn't have been there otherwise. I don't think the movie's perfect, it's just good. It's good from beginning to end, but I think they shouldn't have waited so long in order to get to the 'scares'.

With that said, I still think the atmospheric approach to the movie pays off vastly in the end. I think this is the type of film that will surprise a lot of people who give it a shot. This is a good movie, not worth going out of your way to see, but a damn solid horror flick.