Lord of Tears (2013)

When a school teacher is plagued by recurring nightmares of a mysterious entity, he travels to his childhood home because suspects a link to a dark incident in his past.

Director:

Lawrie Brewster

Writer:

Sarah Daly

Stars:

David Schofield, Alexandra Hulme, Euan Douglas

Cast

Cast overview:
David Schofield	...	Owl Man
Alexandra Hulme	...	Eve Turner (as Lexy Hulme)
Euan Douglas	...	James Findlay
Jamie Scott Gordon	...	Allen Milton (as Jamie Gordon)
Alan Ireby	...	Solicitor
Neil Cooper	...	Michael Milton
Nancy Joy Page	...	Flora May Findlay
Graham Robertson	...	Henry Findlay
Jock Ferguson	...	Taxi Driver

Storyline

Lord of Tears tells the story of James Findlay, a school teacher plagued by recurring nightmares of a mysterious and unsettling entity. Suspecting that his visions are linked to a dark incident in his past, James returns to his childhood home, a notorious mansion in the Scottish Highlands, where he uncovers the disturbing truth behind his dreams, and must fight to survive the brutal consequences of his curiosity.

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Plot Keywords:

owl | axe | 

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Genres:

Drama | Horror

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Did You Know?

Trivia

You can rent the house where this is filmed for a holiday through Sykes Cottages, it's called Ardgour House and is exactly as it was in the film.

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Connections

Spin-off The Black Gloves (2017)

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Soundtracks

Sleep, My Darling
Written by Sarah Daly & Youssef Khalil
Performed by Sarah Daly & Youssef Khalil

User Reviews

I tried to like it.

Lord of Tears promised me something unique and terrifying, but it didn't quite deliver what I had been hoping.

For a movie funded by kickstarter and working with a tiny budget, it's well-made. The artistic direction, photography, and everything visual in this film is wonderful. The score is beautiful and unsettling when it needs to be: very appropriate. The concept of the film had so much potential, potential which was completely bunked because of the performances within the movie.

The lead, Euan Douglas, wasn't absolutely awful, but something seemed to be holding him back, causing his acting and lines to appear stiff and awkward and uncomfortable at best. This could have been a problem with script or direction, but I would be willing to bet that it might have been conflict with the second-in-lead, Alexandra Hulme.

Hulme's performance was atrocious. It takes a lot for me to dislike a character which is not meant to be the target of audience hostility, but Hulme managed to accomplish this. For me personally, her over-acting and forced lines and exaggerated movements really tarnished the otherwise appealing movie. Had the part been taken up by another actress, it might have been an entirely different horror movie, but instead, Hulme has dragged my review down to a 3/10, and beset me with bitterness and buyer's remorse.

A lot of people tend not to expect much with horror movies, but the truth is that it's very much an art, as with any other genre. To really scare someone or cause unrest or discomfort, whatever the horror movie's motive may be, there's a delicate balance that must be maintained through visuals, music, and performances. If just one portion is off, it can ruin the experience entirely.

I wanted to like this movie very much. I'm a huge supporter of independent horror and Hollywood horror alike, but as the extensively positive reviews led me to this film, I needed to address it from my own point of view. I don't know where the 8.2 rating came from.

TL;DR: the marketing was brilliant, the visuals stunning, and the score beautiful, but the performance of Hulme just completely ruined it for me. This was not the horror movie that I was looking for, though it seemed to promise that it was.

Details

Official Sites:

Official site Official Website

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

1 August 2020 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Owlman

Filming Locations:

Ardgour House, Ardgour, Highland, Scotland, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

Hex Media, Dark Dunes Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

104 min (Original Cut) 85 min (Director's Cut)

Color:

Color