The Charnel House (2016) | Film Review

The Charnel House stars Callum Blue as Alex Reaves, a talented architect with a vision: transform a former slaughterhouse with a sordid past into stylized lofts, complete with voice recognition access and every modern luxury. To inspire confidence, Alex moves in his wife, Charlotte (Nadine Velazquez), and daughter, Mia (Makenzie Moss), with nary a thought to the property’s clouded past.

As his tenants become more accustomed to their swanky new surroundings, a mystery unravels. Mia seems to be conversing with a new imaginary friend, while reports of a strange and unknown boy roaming the halls begins to emerge. As Alex casually dismisses concerns, Charlotte teams up with Devin Pyles (Erik LaRay Harvey) – a suspicious resident with an agenda of his own – to break down the case and get to the bottom of this high-tech Overlook Hotel.

Supernatural thrillers are the go-to in horror these days, as films like Paranormal Activity and The Conjuring can attest. The overwhelming fear that someone, somewhere, is watching us permeates our very existence. Inability to confront nor defend that presence elevates that fear to an even more heightened state. Craig Moss (the Bad Ass series) wants the direction to emulate this world, while spinning his tale in another, more convoluted direction.

The Charnel House is a testament to what works and what doesn’t in films of this nature. Callum Blue delivers a tour de force performance, effortlessly flowing from mild to maniacal, and when the acting is strong, the movie evokes the chills this material demands. Velazquez and Harvey also hold their ends down nicely as they work to piece together the supernatural shenanigans disrupting their lives.

Unfortunately – and I absolutely loathe myself for having to pick on an innocent child performer – when the acting falters, so does the film. And nowhere does The Charnel House take a greater derailing than with the miscasting of young Alden Tab as Rupert, the mysterious young boy serving as a lynchpin for this entire story. I am certain young Tab will have a long, generous career in Hollywood and this will be nothing more than a blip on his resume, but when your character is meant to convey both the atmosphere and the menace of your story, he needs to be a home run. Aside from Alex, Rupert is the most pivotal aspect of the entire film. Director Craig Moss throws a magicians bag of tricks at the screen to convince us it’s working, but a few too many leaps in logic on the page and Rupert as a presence fails to push the rather unique narrative to the depths it desperately wanted to go.

The Charnel House is an intriguing thriller with a novel concept, carried forward by a bold and focused performance from its lead. With too much of the script hinged on a character that fails to engage, we are left with a film in dire need of a modern renovation.