The horror movie Abandoned (2022) starring Emma Roberts (American Horror Story), Michael Shannon (Boardwalk Empire), and John Gallagher Jr. (Gaslight), star in this movie rated 3.7 on IMDb for being too slow and meaningless, but it's none of the above.
Emma stars as a new mother dealing with postpartum depression in their fresh-out-of-the-way farmhouse, where she is haunted by the ghosts of its past tenants who did unspeakable things which will not stay silent.
In many ways, the movie is about how women are gaslit by estranged husbands and doctors instead of listened to empathetically and understood.
Many unsettling elements seem like they could have more profound importance. Still, they show why the husband is having trouble engaging, i.e., overworked, the difficulty of his job as a veterinarian, though why he's gone 18 hours a day when he only seems to have two clients could have been better explored.
The historical horrors of the house must inevitably crash into the mother's presence in a way perhaps only a mother could understand.
I think there are many ways the story could have played out better. Still, I believe, in the end, it's a story about a mother recognizing past abuses and finding gratitude for what she has so that she does not become the next abuser created out of trauma and neglect.
Those who fail to see deeply will not see anything but the wind rustling over old leaves, failing to see what beauty lies beneath.
Emma stars as a new mother dealing with postpartum depression in their fresh-out-of-the-way farmhouse, where she is haunted by the ghosts of its past tenants who did unspeakable things which will not stay silent.
In many ways, the movie is about how women are gaslit by estranged husbands and doctors instead of listened to empathetically and understood.
Many unsettling elements seem like they could have more profound importance. Still, they show why the husband is having trouble engaging, i.e., overworked, the difficulty of his job as a veterinarian, though why he's gone 18 hours a day when he only seems to have two clients could have been better explored.
The historical horrors of the house must inevitably crash into the mother's presence in a way perhaps only a mother could understand.
I think there are many ways the story could have played out better. Still, I believe, in the end, it's a story about a mother recognizing past abuses and finding gratitude for what she has so that she does not become the next abuser created out of trauma and neglect.
Those who fail to see deeply will not see anything but the wind rustling over old leaves, failing to see what beauty lies beneath.