Rebecca Hall, Imelda Staunton and Dominic West star in this gloomy science vs. the supernatural thriller.
The Awakening
Cert. 15
CONSIDERING the impressive cast, (which includes Imelda Staunton, Dominic West and Rebecca Hall) The Awakening came and went, almost unnoticed, shortly after it’s release last November.
Set in the gloomy aftermath of post-WW1 England, Hall plays forthright academic, Florence Cathcart, who visits an isolated boarding school run by Robert Mallory (West) and Maude Hill (Staunton) in an attempt to scientifically explain away sightings of a child ghost.
It may be beautifully shot and acted, but the scares are few and far between, and the climactic explanation for the strange goings on could belong to an entirely different film, which feels like a frustrating cop-out.
There’s enough ‘whodunit’ business to hold most people’s attention though.
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