Brackenmore Movie Is A Horror With Mean Irish Witches

Horror & mystery Irish thriller movies’ — Brackenmore tells the story of Kate. She arrives in Brackenmore to take care of an inheritance. Having not even known she had an uncle, she stays in a quaint lodging in the middle of town. Everything seems familiar even though she’s never been there before… or has she? With her parents deceased, Kate needs to figure out what she is there for.

Brackenmore is Chris Kemble’s debut feature film. He has previously finished a few short films and a collaborative effort with 25 other directors from the UK called Shortcuts to Hell: Volume 1. Davidson, his co-director completed God’s Acre (2015).

Horror and Mystery Thriller Film — For Irish Movie Lovers

• Director: Chris Kemble and J.P Davidson,
• Writer: Chris Kemble and inspired by Brian Teles,
• Release: Thriller 2016 movies, a UK release,
• Starring: Sophie Hopkins, Elaine Kennedy, Joe Kennard, Margaret O’Sullivan, and D.J. McGrath,
• Fun Facts: Its working titles were Banshee: Beyond the Lake, The Devil Knows You’re Here, Banshee, and We Do What We Must.

Brackenmore Official Movie Trailer

Brackenmore – Thriller Movies for the Irish

At the beginning of this film, I knew how the Brackenmore movie would end. I was not entirely incorrect when the movie finished but it was still a little easy to see that something is amiss with Kate. Everything about this movie is dark. Dark shadows, gloomy weather, somber conversations. I wrote in my notes a comment about the director nailing the overall feeling of the weather in England. Everything is dark except for Kate.

Throughout the entire movie, Kate is not in shadow. A child appears on the street at one point and he wears a mask. The owners of the house Kate stays in more or less always in darkness. It almost seems like you have nowhere else to focus except for Kate. Brackenmore is definitely what you’d describe as a slow burn. It’s nice and short though at 72 minutes so at least the wait is not overly long.

For at least the first act, the film plays with the idea of wondering exactly who could be the driving force behind the unease set by the tone, the music, and the characters. Is it Kate who is always cast in the light or perhaps the old couple entirely in the dark? There aren’t too many people introduced until the second half so it’s easy to think that maybe, just maybe my initial prediction would be incorrect.

The Halfway Mark

At around the halfway mark though, I began to wonder whether poor Kate had amnesia. Ominous and precarious clues are dropped quite heavily around the proceedings.  Finally, a scene where Kate’s face is cast half in shadow. I began to wonder if this was on purpose. Suddenly the film accelerates to full strength into a crazy finale.

Was the payoff worth the subtle hints and jabs of odd and bizarre behavior? In short, Brackenmore could have been more enjoyable with a little more detail. This is one movie I can say could have done with a little background on what a Banshee is. So it fell a little short for me.  Just the description from a few sources led me to believe that Kate’s nighttime cries heard throughout the film were consistent with the following excerpt.

What is a Banshee?

In the process of translating Gaelic tales into English, a differentiation was made between the “banshee” and other fairy beings, a distinction that appears to be absent in the original narratives in their native tongue. The mournful dirge evolved into a shriek that announced an impending death. The banshee’s cry became a harbinger of a family member’s death, and a sighting of the banshee was considered an omen of one’s demise.

I wanted a few tidbits about the banshee and some about Tom’s role then I may have finished with a little more enthusiasm. I must point out though, that Sophie Hopkin’s performance as Kate in this, was amazing.

Brackenmore the Irish Movie

Armed with that little bit of mythology though, it’s quite the layered story. Overall it felt a little unfinished. I’ve also read that there was more than one scene featuring the microphone dropping in. I didn’t notice, but maybe you will now, that I’ve pointed it out.

I give Brackenmore

2.5 who put that skull there? out of 5