Film Review: Oddity

Director: Damian McCarthy

Genre: Horror, Supernatural

Format: Streaming

Damian McCarthy’s Oddity is a chilling look at how far some people will go to get what they want. The movie opens with Dani setting up cell signal at her rural, countryside home while her husband, Tim, is away at work. After testing the new cell signal, Dani calls her twin sister, Darcy, to invite her out for a visit. The same night, a patient at the psychiatric hospital where Tim works breaks in and kills Dani. We cut to black. A year later, Tim is living in the house with his new girlfriend. When Darcy, a blind psychic, shows up with a life-sized wooden golem, the fun begins.

This film works on so many different levels. Carolyn Bracken plays the role of both Darcy and Dani, and she does a fantastic job. The twins are completely different from one another. Dani appears like a typical suburban wife with her long, red curls and warm, brown eyes. She is jovial, friendly, and approachable. Darcy is ethereal and otherworldly: white-blonde hair cropped short, silver eyes that barely move. She is aloof, quiet, and off-putting in her intensity.

McCarthy takes us back to the fundamentals of horror, building dread slowly over the film’s 98-minute run time, using lighting and background music to increase tension, and carefully shifting shots to capture the golem’s sudden movements in ways that leave us gleefully startled. The pacing is perfect. We move slowly but build momentum as the film wears on, always paying close attention to the details that are dropped in and picked up at later points.

The movie often feels like it is set in the 1950’s. The background is monotone: beige, brown, and always dimly lit. The characters dress old-timey in starched skirts and tops. It works well to keep us feeling alienated. We are truly, wholly transported into the world McCarthy has created, which takes place almost completely in one room of a house, its stone walls and dim lighting reminding us of a castle filled with old ghosts and malicious creatures.

There is a welcome lack of gore in this movie. McCarthy refuses to give into modern horror’s obsession with bloodiness for the sake of being bloody. All the horror comes from the tension, the use of the supernatural objects – namely the golem, which is the stuff of nightmares – and the horror of watching the brutal lengths a person will take to fill their desires.

Oddity was such an interesting ride. I could predict where things were going, but not in a way that spoiled any of the fun. Instead, the plot delivers tried and true techniques in new, refreshing ways to engage us. I’m looking forward to watching McCarthy’s next movie. 4/5.

Purchase Link: Available on Hulu

Review By Chelsea Catherine
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