Sound, The (2017)
Matt Boiselle
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Starring Rose McGowan, Michael Eklund, Richard Gunn
Directed by Jenna Mattison
In the world of the paranormal and its supposed sights, findings and numerous instances of extraordinarily creepy stuff that remains to be seen, there are two groups that sit on opposing sides of the fence: you’ve got your believers, then you have your dogged skeptics. The latter are the ones who will maintain anything that could be deemed as “ghostly” to nothing more than illusions to the eye and certain happenstance. Director Jenna Mattison’s audibly chilling film, The Sound gives us all a taste of what it’s like to be a non-believer, and the repercussions of what can happen when you turn a deaf ear to something that wants to be heard.
The film stars Rose McGowan as Kelly, an online blogger who specializes in debunking said supernatural occurrences using low-frequency sound equipment, and her previous results have not only proven many people wrong, but it’s also gained her quite the following online. Her latest job leads her to the city of Toronto, where she’s just received an online message from someone who claims that a ghost of a young woman haunts the subway where she either committed suicide, or was pushed to her death. Rose’s curiosity gets piqued, and she again leaves her significant other behind (something tells me this has been an ongoing issue – gotta love underlying dramatic elements). Her hunt ends up in one of the darkest damn sub-subway systems I’ve ever seen in my life, and she meets up with maintenance man Christopher Lloyd, and together they try to uncover the mystery of the “accident” that cost a young woman her life many years ago. Big Lloyd fan, are ya? Well don’t look for him to stick around for too long, and no this isn’t a spoiler – he’s just got a very small role in the film. Sadly, the years have taken their toll on a fantastic actor, and he spent most of his screen-time warbling words and grunting indecipherable phrases – where have you gone, Doc Brown?
Kelly’s got her share of demons, and at times her mind works against her, which only piles on the difficulty of finding out exactly what took place in these tunnels some time ago…and what is it with that damn noise?? Okay, so here’s my main issue with this film, and get ready because it MIGHT come as a shock to some prospective viewers – you ready? It’s not scary in the least fathomable possibility. There, I’ve said it, and I’m not ashamed to say that I really did have high hopes for this one, but it never was able to deliver whatever false promises I’d built up in my skull. First off, while McGowan’s performance was adequate, her character’s thinking sunk this presentation into the ground – she was surprised that her phone reception was bad…two levels deep in the subway, and aside from every time she grabbed her damn phone to post her findings to her followers (good reception in some spots, apparently), she hashtagged EVERYTHING. Sometimes the progression of technology in horror films makes me want to #ripmyskinoff. While I’m sure that this film could potentially appeal to some ghost-hunters and otherworldly skeptics, The Sound was a colossal swing and a miss in my book, and I’ll be covering my ears when this finally releases to the people – trust me, the scary noises will resume at some point.
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Film
Categorized:Reviews
