‘The Hallow’ (2015): Our Friday Night Movie Recommendation

This Friday is all about family, new adventures that come with new opportunities and fairies. Not the Tinkerbell kind, though. The fairies that come straight out of Irish mythology and want nothing more than to wreck havoc on the lives of humans that cross their path. If that sounds like a fun time for you then this is the movie you should be watching tonight.

The Hallow follows a young couple as they move to a new house bordering on an ancient wood that the husband, Adam (Joseph Mawle), has been charged with getting samples from because he’s a conservationist. Almost immediately, they are warned by the locals that they are not welcome and that, more importantly, they shouldn’t be going into the woods. They claim that the wood is said to be filled with all kinds of ancient Irish mythological creatures which Adam dismisses as nonsense. Little by little though, strange occurrences start to make Adam and his wife, Clare (Bojana Novakovic), think that there may be more to the local stories than they thought.

Writer/director Corin Hardy creates an incredible world that’s so rich in Irish mythology and so rooted in ancient Irish traditions that it pulls you right into the film and makes you believe that places likes this really exist in real life. The heavy atmosphere created here is reminiscent of something you would expect from Guillermo Del Toro, which is an amazing accolade for a first time filmmaker like Hardy. While heavily relying on Irish mythology, this film still makes it relevant and relatable. It also respects the folklore that it pulls from; it’s a really compelling balance of old and new which features some of the best creatures that I have ever seen in an indie movie. These creatures are pulled from the deepest and darkest places of imagination and they complete the world that Hardy has created for us. When you combine them with the “zombie fungus” that is featured in this film, it’s enough to make even the most avid horror fan squeamish.

The actors chosen for this film are spot on and create such a genuine young family. We really are rooting for Adam, Clare and their infant son, Finn. So much of this film revolves around the adult fears of keeping your family safe and not being able to protect your loved ones. It’s all handled really well and Novakovic and Mawle are real talents. Overall, this is a truly scary film that manages to combine the otherworldly qualities of Irish mythology and the everyday fears of not being able to protect the people that you love. First time director, Corin Hardy, manages to create an amazing film with terrifying creatures and really impressive visual effects. Watch it tonight. You won’t be disappointed.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BU1StZXrExs?rel=0&controls=0&showinfo=0&w=920&h=425]

Melissa is a contributing writer to That Moment In. Check out her Food and DIY Blog The Creative Fox Den.