Heading into Halloween season, you know what we need? A good ghost story – one that doesn’t rely on backbreaking possessions and bodies getting dragged around the house a la Paranormal Activity. Something homey and rich in content more than in your face terror. Something that, maybe, takes you back to a better time in film-making. Andrew Wiest’s The Forlorned could be that movie, if you’re into titles that contain the same cinematic atmosphere as Pet Semetary. I should be clear that the two movies aren’t related in any way, especially when it comes to plot, but my mind just kept making a connection there that I can’t explain. Really, I should be likening The Forlorned to The Fog since this feature is basically the iconic John Carpenter movie without ghost pirates coming out of the mist. Colton Christensen, Robert Bear, Cory C. Dangerfield, Larry Laverty, Eilizabeth Mouton and Shawn Nottingham star in this low key, suspenseful haunted house flick.
In The Forlorned, Tom (Christensen) wants to buy his father’s boat back, so he takes a job as a groundskeeper and renovator at the lighthouse on a gloomy, isolated island. As it turns out, he was the only one to apply for the job due to the island’s dark history. A centuries old curse still lingers there, and disembodied voices, apparitions and strange supernatural occurrences plague Tom’s daily life as soon as he takes up shop in the lighthouse. These unexplained phenomenon, mixed with his own mental deterioration, cause him to search out the answers hiding in the darkness… but what he finds there may be much worse. Based on the novel by Angela J. Townsend, The Forlorned is written, directed, produced and edited by Andrew Wiest with co-writer and co-producer Ryan Reed. Townsend also executively produced the feature with Robert Andrus and Dale McGarvey. Dusty Jones provided cinematography.
Oh, the things you can do with a great location and an extremely talented DP. The Forlorned looks like a million bucks due to these two aspects. The lighthouse – and the actual house, house – and its surrounding area is a fantastic setting for a movie like this. Old. Away from civilization. Spacious. It gives off a sense of cabin fever while also giving the sense of being completely open to attack. At times, you have to wonder whether Tom is really being haunted by 18th century ghosts or if it’s all in his head due to the isolation of it all. Although, the correct answer is painfully obvious by the end of this film. And the cinematography? Perfect. Crystal clear focus, shot with just the right amount of dark and blue filter. It painted a depressing and mysterious atmosphere that matched the awesome movie poster, which is a good thing. There’s no false advertising here. You get exactly what you expect. Well done to the location scouts, Dusty Jones and the cover artist.
The Forlorned is creepy right from the start and becomes a paradox of conflicting ideas. As I mentioned above, the lighthouse is isolated but open. The ghosts are maleficent but not powerful enough to be life threatening. My favorite contrast is the main character Tom and his performer, Colton Christensen. Tom is a big lumberjack of a man, who could easily overpower any force trying to get in his way. Yet he’s a big softy at heart and a tender soul. Colton played the part with just the right amount of strength and vulnerability and he’s one of the reasons why this movie should succeed. What an award winning performance. A Good Outlaw Studios hit every nail on the head here in terms of production, story, and casting. While it loses its pacing at times and becomes slow, it’s hard for me to find any other negative aspect except maybe I would have liked a little more horror? Still, The Forlorned is a good, old fashioned supernatural mystery, and it’s an above average book to film adaption. Final Score: 6.5 out of 10.
