Claire is approached by the father of her murdered childhood friend to help investigate the haunted moor he believes is his son’s final resting place.
Sophia La Porta, David Edward-Robertson, Elizabeth Dormer-Phillips, and the late, great British actor Bernard Hill are among the cast members of The Moor. Chris Cronin made his feature-length directing debut with The Moor, which screened in the esteemed ‘First Blood’ strand at Pigeon Shrine FrightFest and received widespread acclaim after its world premiere. The movie won Best Scare and was nominated for Best Director and Best Film at the 2023 Total Film FrightFest Awards.
The Moor is definitely what one would describe as an atmospheric slow-burn. It is a tale that takes its time to be told and if you are after something action-filled or stereotypical, then you can probably quit reading right now as your tastes are not going to be met. This is a different kind of horror altogether; one that attempts to rather get into the viewer’s psyche and chill them to the bone.
Firstly, the film’s primary strength is its cinematography. Cronin has a desire to take the viewers on a fanciful journey to a place rarely visited, the English moors—a place responsible for many of the world’s creatures of fantasy and folklore. Pick up any old English tale and you’ll be met with stories of boggarts and bogeys and all manner of fey and fiend; the moors home to many of them. Despite the almost ethereal beauty that fills most of the film’s scenes, there is an accompanying primal sense of dread filling our vision almost porously. The mists and fogs, wetlands and peat all feel ancient and unknowable, with the scattered monoliths adding arcane mystery to the The Moor‘s atmosphere.
The acting is also incredibly powerful. The cast is small but poignant with most dealing with some kind of emotional trauma. This sense of vulnerability is thick and saturating, adding to the film’s morbid, macabre atmosphere. The dialogue, too, is often wrought with personal struggle and aggressive tones—the words of those dealing with immense grief.
The Moor is not without its drawbacks though as it follows films like The Witch (2015) and Midsommar (2019) in regards to the really rewarding parts really only taking place in the final act. The things these films have in common are the strong, rich settings, cultural immersion, and engaging character developments that strive to keep you absorbed in between the moments of horror. For many genre fans, that often amounts to tedium if they care nothing for artful cinematography and long more for the jump scare.
The Moor is as much a piece of art as it is a horror film. The atmosphere is on a whole other level and I found myself drawn to the mystery of the moors and the world it creates. The scares, while few and far between are definitely there but are not the focus of the film. It is a well-directed, well-acted film that will probably divide critics and fans alike as it is not going to be to the tastes of those who like anything fast-paced.
Commenting on the film’s release, Director Chris Cronin said:
“My aim with this story was to create an original horror film set in my home county of Yorkshire. Instead of delving into the fictional murders themselves, I focused on the aftermath and how something so terrible affects lives and relationships. What happens when so much grief and guilt are left unresolved? As a genre filmmaker I wanted to explore those important questions through tension and suspense. Genre lets us take a look at very human and painful situations and make them larger than life, forcing us to re-examine them. Thankfully, most of us don’t know what it’s like to experience a tragedy as great as Bill and Claire’s, but through the medium of horror we can elevate how awful it would be, making the audience really feel it.”
The Moor will have its theatrical release in the UK on June 14th. The digital release will follow on July 1st. Thanks for reading and as always, stay sordid. The artwork and trailer are below.
