Séance
Written and Directed by Vivian Kerr
Starring: Scottie Thompson, Connor Paolo, Jilon VanOver, Vivian Kerr
Unrated
Runtime: 85 minutes
Premiered at Newport Beach Film Festival

by Anne Johnson, Staff Writer

Could the horror of losing a child be enough to drive you crazy? Horror movies have leaned on this idea time and time again to create chilling films that explore what happens when children pass on—and sometimes refuse to pass over. But in Séance, the twists and turns of what happens to the living might be just as horrible as the child that could be haunting their house.

The story begins some time in the late 1800s (as far as I can tell by the costumes!), following newlyweds, Emma (Scottie Thompson) and her second husband Albert (Connor Paolo) as they vacation together seaside. When they bump into Emma’s first husband, George (Jilon VanOver) and his second wife Lillian (Vivian Kerr), awkwardness abounds when all four end up at George and Lillian’s house for a civilized dinner. After learning about the recent passing of George and Lillian’s daughter, Hazel, several incidents occur that put Lillian’s sanity at the center, including one ill-fated séance. Is the child really haunting their house or is Lillian slowly losing her mind?

Some of the plot points in Séance break out of the usual tropes right off the bat: Emma is a liberated woman, a celebrated novelist who left her first husband, George, because of his lack of support for her career. Not bad for the late 1800s. Additionally, the film takes the time to iron out the human relationships among the cast of four living characters. Emma and Albert are having issues in the wedding bed, George and Emma longingly reminisce on their shared past, Lillian and Albert bond over being outsiders among the former lovers, and Lillian and Emma seem to come together even if, at first, for no other reason than being women in a time of men. I wasn’t expecting human relationships to center so prominently in what could have easily been another haunted-child ghost story.

As the film moves on, I was impressed how these relationships turn into a focal point of the story, shifting the narrative from one of mourning to one of imminent danger. And the plot twist at the end was wholly unexpected, begging the question: How well do we know the people we marry?

I was also very impressed with the atmosphere of Séance. A dark, labyrinthine house during a thunderstorm is prime real estate for letting your imagination run wild, seeing and hearing things that aren’t there, and getting scared out of your wits. It’s also an ideal place for things to occur in the shadows without being detected by prying eyes. The gleaming wood, warm light of the candles, and the general visuals of the movie are impressive for an indie effort.

That said, I did have one or two nits. It’s not easy to make a period film, and I will note that there were a few things that felt a little anachronistic, even if they’re technically historically true. I have a pet peeve of horror movies starting off with creepy kid laughter or singing, weird toy noises, and anything else that feels a little forced. That said, I could’ve done without the talking doll audio featured prominently in the first two minutes, and later in Hazel’s room. It also felt like talking dolls would have been pretty unusual for what I assumed the time period was, and brought me out of the film, trying to figure out what the heck year it was supposed to be. I also felt myself overanalyzing the costume choices trying to spot anything out of place, solely because of that doll noise. Anyway, that might just be the way my brain works.

All in all, though, I really enjoyed Séance. It’s a mystery masquerading as a ghost story. Is Lillian really seeing the ghost of her child? Will Emma figure out whether she and Albert can reconcile differences? WIll she fall for George again? Excellent plot, wonderful sets, impressive acting, and decent script.