On her way home from work one night, teacher Cass (Minka Kelly) takes a shortcut and she passes a stranded car with a woman inside. The next morning Cass finds out that the woman she saw was murdered and a series of strange events inside the mansion she lives in make her believe she could be the next victim. With her husband Matthew (Dermot Mulroney) and her friend Rachel (Maggie Grace) to lean on, Cass tries to unravel the mystery that threatens to push her into a breakdown.
‘Blackwater Lane’ has a lot going for it. The premise of the film is intriguing and film-maker Jeff Celentano does a good job of making the viewer feel uneasy in the first 20 minutes or so. We’re introduced to plucky Cass who seems to have a difficult relationship with her husband and she tries to ignore her friend Rachel’s dislike of the man she’s married. Once Cass finds out that the woman she saw was murdered, the film shifts into a supernatural thriller, with plenty of visual tricks and suspense building.
At the heart of the film is the question of whether a supernatural force is at work and tormenting Cass, or if she’s slowly losing her mind and on a one-way-trip into spiralling out of control. As she grasps to hold on to her sanity, she’s alarmed when Matthew points out how forgetful she’s getting and things worsen when he leaves for a work trip and Cass is in the house alone.
A thriller such as this has to deliver a satisfying pay-off, especially when the pace is glacial. Despite a promising build up, the film gets stuck in a repetitive loop of jump scares that don’t add anything other than cheap thrills. The eventual reveal of what’s really going on is underwhelming and given the small cast of characters, it’s not all that difficult to work out. That sadly takes away the mystery element and you spend about an hour of the film just waiting for Cass to discover what you already know.
A solid cast is squandered here. Minka Kelly tries her best and while she gives a decent performance, the material doesn’t allow her to fully shine. Dermot Mulroney and Maggie Grace are mostly wasted as the two people closest to Cass, and an attempt at character development for both comes far too late in the film. Outside of the main trio, Natalie Simpson is a standout as DC Lawson, the police officer that finds herself frequenting Cass’ house as the mystery escalates.
‘Blackwater Lane’ is a fairly simple, no-fills thriller that’s been done a hundred times before. Horror fans will be disappointed by misleading supernatural angle of the trailer and those looking for a good thriller may just find their patience being tried. The film is far too long and it spreads its story far too thin, when in reality a tighter 80-90 minute thriller may have proved to be more beneficial.
Cast: Minka Kelly, Dermot Mulroney, Maggie Grace, Natalie Simpson Director: Jeff Celentano Writers: Elizabeth Fowler (screenplay), B.A. Paris (book) Certificate: 15 Duration: 108 mins Released by: Plaion Pictures Release date: 27th January 2025 Buy ‘Blackwater Lane’ now
