Tom (Tyler Q Rosen), a man haunted by the aftermath of his father’s suicide, abandons his wife Kathy (Sara Fletcher) to return to the lakeside cottage where the tragedy took place. After growing concerned about his radio silence, Kathy enlists the help of her brother Mark (Oscar Wilson) and his grief counsellor girlfriend Jess (Adriana Isabel) to find him and bring him home. Upon arrival, they search high and low for Tom, only to find that he’s not quite himself and showing signs of manic behaviour.
‘The Daemon’ is from film-makers Matt Devino and David Michael Yohe, and it attempts to blur the lines between reality and the supernatural. At its heart is a mystery that surrounds the lake and its part in the trauma that Tom has spent years trying to overcome, and there are more than a few shades of ‘The Amityville Horror’ by way of ‘The Shining' in its narrative structure. Kathy finds Tom spiralling into obsession and worries that he’s following the same path as his late father, but is it Tom’s fault or is there something more sinister at play?
The film’s mystery is unravelled in a surprisingly straight forward way, leaving little more to watch unfold than worsening dynamics among spouses and friends. Dodgy special effects aside, which can be forgiven as this is a low-budget film, ‘The Daemon’ lacks any real surprises or twists. It’s obvious from the beginning where the film is going to go, and despite an attempt to go a little weird in the second-half, it all feels very pedestrian.
The script is overly clunky at times, with key plot points delivered with the subtly of a sledge-hammer and often proving to be accidentally funny. One such moment sees Kathy telling her Mark and Jess about the suicide of Tom’s father after they arrive at the cottage, and she says it like she’s telling them about something she forgot to pick up at the supermarket. The response from Jess states the obvious and it’s just one of many examples where the script could have benefited from another pair of eyes and a rewrite.
‘The Daemon’ treads well-trodden ground and while it tries to find its own lane, it’s hampered by a few too many nods to films horror audiences will already have seen. Add to that a cast that is patchy at best, Tyler Q Rosen is easily the best of the bunch, and what you have is a half-baked horror that never truly manages to find its own identity. There are a lot of ideas at play here, and it’s clear that Devino and Yohe are horror aficionados, but the film never really rises above mediocre unfortunately.
Cast: Tyler Q Rosen, Sara Fletcher, Blake Ellis, Olivia Day, Oscar Wilson, Adriana Isabel, Mario Daggett Directors: Matt Devino & David Michael Yohe Writers: Matt Devino & David Michael Yohe Certificate: TBC Duration: 87 mins Released by: Whalefilm / Isotropic Films Release date: 23rd August 2024
