From the opening shots of dark woods and a woman calling a name, The Beast Within creates an ominous atmosphere that doesn’t let up throughout its running time. Director Alexander J. Farrell weaves an intricate, slow burn tale of dread, secrets, and various forms of bodily betrayal that both rewards and confounds expectations to intriguing effect.
As with most horror, the central theme is family – in this case the isolated household of Noah (Kit Harrington), his wife Imogen (Ashleigh Cummings), their young daughter Willow (Caoilinn Springall), and maternal grandfather Waylon (James Cosmo). They live in a dilapidated house located in rolling countryside that includes evocative woods, and completed with a ruined castle. From the get-go we follow Willow in this strange environment of secrets and uncertainty, as she watches her father being taken away (along with a pig), while her grandfather reminds her not to be out after dark. Occasional moments with her mother are charming, yet tinged with a sense of danger that prompts both the character and audience to wonder what’s actually going on. Willow also struggles with asthma, needing an inhaler at times of stress or exertion and, surprise surprise, she experiences plenty of those.
Willow’s discoveries as the film progresses expose secrets through steady reveals, the audience learning more of the situation alongside her. This slow, and at times piecemeal reveal is a great strength of the The Beast Within, as Farrell makes a virtue of a limited budget that’s much like the early work of Neil Marshall and Jennifer Kent. Shadowy rooms, thick forest and ancient stone corridors all conceal as much as they reveal, further obscurement coming in the form of dream sequences and recollections that include a key scene of Willow with both her parents. The scene is bathed in light, making the family radiant with a sense of happiness and calm, but the continuous flashbacks to the scene indicate the trouble beneath. A shopping trip for Willow and Imogen is similarly golden, in contrast to Willow spending time in the woods with her father – the dark trees stark against the brightness of the sky. Director of photography Daniel Katz maintains a visual beauty throughout the film, the moorlands providing a sweeping grace while the forest is eerie yet entrancing. The interiors of the house as well as the castle ruins are often partially lit, especially during the final act where a single oil lamp proves of major importance.
This slow, and at times piecemeal reveal is a great strength of the The Beast Within.
This limited light links to the narrative development, with certain aspects being hinted at through visual motifs and cutaways that raise expectations about a major reveal. This revelation could lead to disappointment, and appearing at the halfway point could suggest that the monster may have been let out of the box too soon, but there’s more to come as the editing throughout mixes impressions to create a strong sense of ambiguity. Noah tells Willow a story that explains what’s been happening, but other events don’t support this explanation, and with both her parents and her grandfather offering different information or avoiding her questions, small wonder that Willow becomes mistrustful and acts out.
The close alignment with Willow is another strength of the film, and Caoilinn Springall is up to the task of displaying a gravitas and poise that’s beyond her years – her scenes with Ashleigh Cummings giving a genuine sense of mother and daughter sharing precious time together. Cosmo is gruffly dependable, offering comfort and stolidity as needed, but Kit Harrington receives relatively little screen time despite his top billing (and being the most recognisable face in the cast) – his distance from the viewer paralleling that of Willow’s. The innocence and confusion of a child is expressed through low angled shots that illustrate the expansive spaces and large figures around her, and the suspenseful set pieces sometimes play out in slow motion, drawing the viewer more deeply into Willow’s perception. As we feel Willow’s fear and uncertainty, we also experience her joy – especially in the aforementioned shopping trip with Imogen, and a touching scene in the woods between Noah and Willow. Nonetheless, even this scene, complete with games about monarchy, has unsettling moments that point to a darker, and possibly all too believable circumstance.
As with many horror movies, there’s a central metaphor running through the film, with references to monsters being analogous to, or completely standing-in for, real-world issues. It’s easy enough to identify in The Beast Within, until the final moments when it seems like it might not have been a metaphor after all – a development that throws the rest of the film into a new light, and makes it more likely to reward repeat viewings as certain aspects take on a different dimension. This revelation isn’t clarified, and the film ends with a profound sense of ambiguity that’s maintained around its central conceit – a testament to the remarkable skills of everyone involved. After all, it’s not easy to take a relatively simple premise of four people in a remote location, add a mystery that could be supernatural and is certainly menacing, and explore these tensions and possibilities without ever succumbing to certainty.
The Beast Within is available on Digital Platforms 19 August via Signature Entertainment
