Anguish (Movie Review)

It Follows set a pretty high bar when it comes to slow burning, moody teen horror. In the same year that David Robert Mitchell realigned expectations of that particular sub-genre comes a similarl ambitious undertaking by Sonny Mallhi making his directing debut with, Anguish. Mallhi's turn out of the gate lacks the distinct dent that It Follows made earlier in the year, but Anguish does at least manage to make a mark of its own. 

Anguish simply tells the tale of a young girl, Tess (Ryan Simpkins), who has struggled with her emotions since she was a little girl moves to a new town. Little does she know that things are about to get even tougher as the spirit of another young girl, Lucy (Amberley Gridley) who was recently killed in a tragic accident decides to take residence in Tess' body. As Tess' will to fight her ghostly visitor Lucy begins to take over. However Tess' mom, Jessica (Annika Marks), is not too keen in letting her daughter go and must work with Lucy's grieving mother Sarah (Karina Logue) to help Lucy's spirit move on. 

Perhaps what's missing the most from Anguish is the presence of a memorable score. What's there does a great job at setting the mood, but it lacks a distinct personality which helps to bring to life creepier scenes, as opposed to the reliance of loud noises and jump scares that inevitably unravels the film's potential. 

Themes of empathy and coping with loss weigh heavily on the characters, while the young Simpkins leads the way with a strong turn as Tess. The young actress is tasked with tackling duel roles once the film dips into the possession angle. Her sense of emotional distress and confused innocence comes across quite well even though Mallhi- a longtime producer- shows some growing pains as a rookie filmmaker in the final stretch of the film. It is Mallhi's ambition that shines in the final act with a fresh take on the possession genre although it never fully manifests into something wholly memorable.

Anguish, for all its bleak thematic weight should be enough to give genre fans a sense of hope in terms of its approach to possession storytelling. The film, while flawed, is a good first impression for the first time director, Mallhi. Overuse of jump scares aside, Anguish has just enough mood, style, and well-rounded performances to help it stand out in the increasingly crowded indie horror scene.