Another story about another house with a ghost The action of every second horror film begins with the relocation of the main characters to a new bridge of residence. According to such patterns, such famous films as “The Amityville Horror”, “The Spell”, “Refuge”, “House of Zombie”, “Darkness”, “Poltergeist” and several dozen, if not hundreds of similar horrors were created. Thus, it becomes more and more difficult for filmmakers to impress the audience with sinister stories hidden in the walls, basements and cabinets of mysterious dwellings. Of course, it is not surprising to get on openly passing projects, whose viewing is a blatant murder of free time, although it is indescribably pleasing that there is at least one worthy one for a dozen failed tapes, like the same phenomenally successful “Spell”, which gave the horror genre a new round of popularity among viewers of various age categories and preferences. But the vast majority of stories about nightmares of a new place of residence are still unremarkable, not shaming the genre and not bringing anything extraordinary to it. Just such a film can be safely considered the Canadian horror of 2008 called “Grindstone Road”. The director of the film, Melanie Orr, as well as screenwriter Paul Herrmann presented us with a template story, the final of which can be determined even by a primary school student, identifying future villains and personally unraveling the tangle of ghostly intrigue. However, with all this, the “Grindstone Road” still looks easy and relaxed, and therefore you can still get acquainted with it.
So, the plot of the film introduces us to a young woman named Hannah (Firuza Balk). In the family of the heroine there was a terrible tragedy that affected the established order of things. Unable to be in the usual and completely boring environment, Hannah, along with her husband Graham (Greg Bryke) goes to the place of his childhood, namely a modest provincial town, where the family buys an old house. As it turns out, the dilapidated building has been without its owner for many years, since it is associated with an ancient legend about a boy whose fate remained unknown. And everything tells us that his spirit is in no hurry to be evicted from their fatherly abode. Amiable and kind neighbors, who have lived in this area for many years, are unable to help the heroine, except to inform her about all the nightmares of her new possession. The ever-busy husband appears before us as an outspoken skeptic, and therefore Hannah will have to personally establish a conflict with the spirit, which will eventually open her eyes to many mysterious things.
Honestly, it is difficult to highlight anything special in this film. We have a heartbroken mother who believes in the supernatural. Her husband believes that all that is happening is just a figment of too violent imagination of his wife and threatens to enroll her in a psychiatrist. An elderly couple of neighbors tell a lot, but at the same time clearly keeps something secret. And just such inconsistencies will simply have to shoot something unexpected closer to the final (although a viewer who knows the genre will understand everything from the first acquaintance with these characters). Also in the program of the film there is a template ghost and ordinary secrets that do not represent any plot value. There is nothing interesting in the film, and all of the above is just a repetition of what was long gone. Melanie Orr decided not to even reproduce the viscous, gloomy atmosphere of maternal insanity, exacerbated by both personal tragedy and the intervention of supernatural forces. The entourage of what is happening is shown as if we are watching an ordinary family drama, and not some horror. And only a couple of more or less frightening moments, like the unexpected reflection of a ghostly silhouette in a mirror, remind us that we are dealing with paranormal phenomena. Although just such horror stories in the film are painfully small, from which the tension completely weathers and we with some sad detachment will be forced to watch the picture on autopilot, since nothing special will happen. I guarantee it.
Nothing remarkable can be said about acting. Fayruza Balk, familiar to a certain audience for her role in the Sopranos, portrays depressive despondency as far as she can, but it will not be possible to imbue her experiences to the end. It is too different type brisk actress, from her heartbroken character from this film. In some places, Fireuz is so fond of his adventures in the house that he completely forgets about his emotional torments. And such transitions from joy to grief and vice versa greatly affect the overall drama of the production. So the effect of a complete immersion in the drama should not be expected. As for Greg Bryke, his skeptic hero is pushed by the creators to the background, where he stays almost until the very end. Nothing special can be said about him. Relative interest is caused only by Walter Learning and Joan Gregson, who embodied the neighbors of the main characters. Although the only thing that can mark these heroes of the older generation, is that they can apply the proverb “In a quiet pool of devils are found.” That’s all there is to say about actors. Of course, Dylan Ofors, a ghost boy, plays an important role in the plot, but his role is mainly reduced to banal intimidation of the main characters, not counting the modest lyrical part we saw as a result of several flashbacks.
In conclusion, if you do not get acquainted with the “Dear Grindstone” for some reason, then you have absolutely nothing to lose. This film cannot boast of absolutely nothing special, each subsequent step of the characters, each plot twist is guessed instantly, and the creators did not even think to bring to their brainchild at least a drop of intrigue or an unexpected turn of the story closer to the final. But at the same time, the picture looks quite easy and relaxed. At least irritating factors have been kept to a minimum. I don’t know if it’s worth looking for this movie on purpose, but if it does fall into your hands, then know – watching it will not give you anything special. This is another story about another ghost house. Horror and drama are very pale here, so think about whether you need to spend time on the void? . .
6 out of 10