It’s been a while since I’ve seen a supernatural horror, and a strange little film The Bridge: Ritual has recently released on Netflix. It is worth a watch? Let’s find out!
The film revolves around a group of game designers trying to create an Augmented Reality horror game to sell to the big developers. For added spice, they used a building with several unexplained murders, even going so far as to incorporate the summoning rituals rumoured to be used by the building’s mad architect into their game. Needless to say, this didn’t work out so well.
Most of the action centres around the heroine Ting, whose brother has been in a coma ever since researching the building, joined by a terrified security guard who appears to be unable to leave the place…
In terms of visuals, the film is great, with some genuinely The Grudge-like creepiness where you find yourself focusing on the still spaces around the heroes, just waiting for a hand to pop out. The directors also use a wide variety of shots to explore the story, switching through drone flyovers to mobile phone cams, reflections, security feeds and first person.
It’s a bit frenetic, and related to the problem that there’s a lot of set horror beats to get through – a lot. It’s like a group of writers were all excitedly pitching horror ideas: “And we can do this! And, and this! And then THIS!” As a result, the story rushes through several connecting scenes and clips some of the horror moments. Guys, just relax! Cut the beats by about a third and let each scene breathe a little. Let the tension draw out. Give us a chance to get truly unsettled.
As for the story, the overall structure is there. The setup of going through the ritual “games” is well executed, and there’s a slow descent into madness as it becomes harder to tell what’s real and what’s not. The final scenes are chaotic as reality itself starts to break down. It’s weird, eerie and horribly enjoyable.
The story events, while a little rushed, generally tie together, what doesn’t is the character motivations. Ting is given a dark secret that binds her to her brother, but it doesn’t really drive her decision making beyond the surface level. It’s a deeper character motivation that kicks in when the plot needs it to, then disappears the moment the story beat is over.
But this is a nitpicking complaint. You watch films like this for the chills and the occasional gore. As an added extra, this film is a spin-off from the original The Bridge movie, but the original is not required watching. For those who have, there’s a little added twist at the end that adds a new layer of grisliness to the whole thing.
If you’re in the mood for a horror that’s a little more experimental than the rest, give The Bridge: Ritual a look. As always, if you agree or disagree, please feel free to let me know!
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