‘Incident in a Ghostland’ Review: Unique Twist and Harrowing Situation Hamstrung by Superfluous Gore and Vociferous Sound

“Incident in a Ghostland” is the product of French filmmaker Pascal Laugier, who wrote and directed the 2018 picture. It premiered at the Festival international du film fantastique de Gérardmer. Sacré bleu!

It won three awards, including the Grand Prize, and has seen continued success from critics and peers alike. I don’t know how I feel about it. My viewing emotions ranged from edge-of-seat intrigue to head-scratching wtf?

The Plot

We are introduced to the Keller family. Pauline (Mylène Farmer) is a single mother of two teenage girls. Beth (Emilia Jones) and Vera (Taylor Hickson) are complete opposites. While Vera is a typical flirty and feisty blonde, Beth is a bespectacled bookish sort who writes horror stories and is obsessed with HP Lovecraft.

The family is relocating. Not only to a new town, but to their recently deceased aunt’s remote estate. The house itself is absurdly spooky. The aunt collected dolls, each creepier than the one before, and their lifeless shells decorate every shelf and room. Beth goes exploring and uncovers the chilling collection while Vera remarks about a news story involving home invasions occurring in the area.

The Keller’s have a history amongst them. Dad is gone. Vera hates the new house and thinks Mom likes Beth more than her. It’s standard drama, but family issues are short-lived as a pair of brutal intruders (Kevin Power and Rob Archer) arrive and shatter the night.

The story picks up where an adult Beth (Crystal Reed) is a successful horror writer. Beth is summoned to return to the house by a traumatized Vera (Anastasia Phillips).  

Good Acting

I enjoyed the performances of all the characters. Particularly the kids, handled well by both Emilia Jones and Taylor Hickson. I believed that they were sisters who, though starkly different, still love each other. Crystal Reed is also excellent as the adult version of Beth.

I was shocked to discover that Taylor Hickson was badly injured while filming a scene. Her face was horribly cut on broken glass, and she was rushed to the hospital where she received 70 stitches. Hickson was permanently scarred and sued the film’s production company as a result. I was happy to see she is doing well now, with the scarring nearly undetectable.

Back to the Film

“Incident in a Ghostland” is fast paced at 90 minutes. There are lots of references to other horror movies that are easy to spot. There were some odd exposition dumps that better writing would correct.

And definitely not suitable for apartments. The loud screams and noises run rampant, and I found my hand clutching the remote like a gunslinger, finger set to decrease volume as need be.

I loved the twist, which I won’t spoil here. Its creative and caught me completely by surprise. There are some brutal moments. One scene is horror royalty with its suspense and sheer terror elements.

“Incident in a Ghostland” is worth watching. I still don’t know if I like it. It’s not something I will watch again but I must recommend it for horror fans.