Teacher Julia Meadows (Keri Russell) comes back to the Oregon community she left many years ago due to her father’s abuse, only to become involved with a 12-year-old boy (Jeremy T. Thomas) in her class who has a dark secret. A new genre for Scott Cooper; his version of a horror movie shares the same kind of grim atmosphere and working-class environs as his Out of the Furnace (2013). At the heart of the story lies an old native legend. Contrived moments are overshadowed by a fine cast, a realistic approach and a relentlessly dark but effective climax where Russell battles monsters, new and old.
2021-U.S. 99 min. Color. Directed by Scott Cooper. Screenplay: Henry Chaisson, Nick Antosca, Scott Cooper. Short Story: Nick Antosca (”The Quiet Boy”). Cast: Keri Russell (Julia Meadows), Jesse Plemons (Paul Meadows), Jeremy T. Thomas (Lucas Weaver), Graham Greene, Scott Haze, Rory Cochrane… Amy Madigan.
Trivia: Co-produced by Guillermo del Toro and David S. Goyer. Filmed in 2018 and delayed a couple of years because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
