The Ghoul (2016) d. Tunley, Gareth (UK) (1st viewing) 85 min
A homicide detective (Tom Meetan) is called to London to investigate a strange double murder wherein both victims are reported to have continued moving towards their assailant despite multiple gunshots to the face and chest. With the help of his former lover (Alice Lowe), he decides to go undercover as a patient to investigate the suspect's psychotherapist (Niamh Cusack), but soon discovers that Nietzsche knew what he was talking about when he warned against looking into the abyss too long….
Much like the recent Tank 432, this Brit psycho-thriller is executive-produced by Ben Wheatley, whose early directorial features Kill List and Sightseers knocked me on my kiester. Unfortunately, also much like Tank 432, this is another admirably produced but thoroughly uninspired/uninspiring retread of superior material gone before. The acting is solid, the cinematography assured, the sound design effective... but the pacing and plot are ho-hum on a colossal level such as to generate more yawns and fervid glances at the clock than anything approximating a shiver. What might have made for a tense and clever 25-minute Twilight Zone episode becomes an exercise in unnecessary padding and tedium.
Arrow’s Blu-ray release offers a filmmakers’ commentary that does little to unlock any mysteries in the story, but writer/director Tunley and Co. do provide some helpful hints for aspiring low-budget auteurs hoping to make their own $19.98 magnum opus. There are also some enjoyable interviews with the cast and crew (who seem to have enjoyed themselves), as well as Tunley’s amusingly dark 9-minute short from 2013, The Baron.
The Ghoul is available now on Blu-ray from Arrow Video and can be ordered HERE:
https://mvdb2b.com/s/TheGhoul/AV103
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