PIGEON SHRINE FRIGHTFEST 2023 – Film Review

Surprises and shocks abound in this emotionally sophisticated horror film that changes gear and genre to a devastating effect.

Two troubled women on different sides of the tracks are about to collide at the same apocalyptic junction. Jesse is on the run from an as-yet-unrevealed trauma, and Elsa is the calculating ‘fixer’ tasked with preventing her from crossing the Canadian border for reasons also unclear.

As their destinies become ever more entwined the severity of the situation they face escalates and they realise they are both no more than collateral pawns in a high-stakes game of damage limitation.

John Rosman’s debut feature is a rare treat. It is clearly his intent to intellectualise and humanise the horror movie experience and he has succeeded majestically on both fronts. By placing characterisation before chaos he has arrived at catharsis.

Structurally his film is readily straightforward in the way we learn of the events that led to the impending crisis. We are drip-fed backstory and exposition in an unfussy manner through flashbacks and spiky dialogue. However, the actual plot is kept deliberately on ice until late on to maximise left-field impact. In solidarity with this brave move, there will be no spoilers here revealing the unexpected genre subversions. Personally, I would avoid trailers and over-specific reviews so as to enjoy these tonal shifts as they were intended. You will not be disappointed.

Jesse is a likable young woman unaware of the misery she leaves in her wake. Sweet and caring she just wants to ‘see the world.’ She seems to inspire kindness in those she meets, such as an elderly farming couple and a world-weary bar worker, and indeed it is her own altruism that lands her in deep shit in the first instance.

Brilliantly portrayed by Hayley Erin she projects Jesse’s vitality and natural magnetism perfectly. Erin also has the range and craft to deal with the realisation meltdowns that ensue and render them truly heartbreaking. One hopes this role acts as a springboard for future feature film opportunities.

Her tracker Elsa is a supremely confident operative used to mending other people’s messes and leaving the field of operation squeaky clean. However, her lauded pragmatism and immaculate professionalism are under attack from Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. This cruel nervous system disease is taking hold and robbing her of her competence and future. She is watching chinks appear in her armor for the first time and her anguish is palpable.

New Life deals with this aspect with a dignity and brutal honesty seldom witnessed in cinema as a whole, let alone in genre ranks. Astonishingly frank and well-informed, it should be used as a blueprint for future projects seeking to integrate devastating illnesses into their plots. This is how it’s done.

British actress Sonya Walger is tasked with bringing Elsa to life and delivers a quietly determined depiction of an inherently stoic woman battling the alien concepts of frustration and vulnerability. The scene in which Elsa consults a lady with ALS about the practicalities of her own impending degeneration is incredibly moving and lands Walger with one of the finest acting moments of the year.

Far too many filmmakers crowbar interesting and sensitive subjects into the horror template out of narrative laziness and artistic convenience, and genre fans are tired of it and wise to it. With New Life, it seems very much the other way around. It feels like Rosman wanted to gift the horror community a film that respected their intelligence and realised the raw potential of the fright flick to move as well as molest. As such, New Life sparkles with the same wit and wisdom nurtured by old-school exponents such as Romero and Cronenberg.

Jesse and Elsa are relatable women with tangible hopes, fears, and life goals and that’s what resonates in the, often fragile, marrow of New Life. It dictates the DNA of the picture to the point that when the violence and hysteria finally take hold it has meaning and perspective because we have invested skin in the game.