The possible possessed child corner of horror really needs to be front and center more often. Between The Omen, Rosemary’s Baby, At The Devil’s Door and The Prodigy, the tension that is found within those films is unparalleled. More than scare the hell out of you, what these films are able to do, is present you with the question of “What if YOUR child was evil?” As a parent, we’re forever presenting with difficult questions, but if your child could very well be the spawn of Satan or in the case of Ivan Kavanagh’s Son, a demon, as a parent…what comes next?
A slow burn, eerie film, Son follows Laura (Halloween‘s Andi Matichak), a woman who has fled a cult and is trying to start her life over. Still having trauma and mental illness stemming from her time in the cult, Laura looks over her back nonstop and for good reason. A single mother to David (an excellent Luke David Blumm), Laura does everything she can to protect her son, from the world and especially from the past she so desperately tries to escape.
Following a creepy sequence involving somewhat of a home invasion by cult members before disappearing, the film shifts from psychological drama to some downright horrific stuff, when David begins to experience changes, leading to the film’s audience asking themselves, “is this all in Laura’s damaged mind, or is this kid really possessed and evil himself?” The back and forth and twists we get with Son, is a great example of Kavanagh’s ability as a storyteller, to get you engrossed in the film. Along with some excellent performances from Matichak, Blumm, Killer Joe’s Emile Hirsch also shines as a Paul, a police officer trying to help Laura figure out what’s going on, following some pretty interesting (and suspect) deaths.
Son is a guessing game, one with style and an execution that pulls you into the story. A great addition to the (possibly) possessed kid genre, it’s one to watch.
Son is available now on DVD/Bluray, via RLJE Films.
