The Ritual

The Ritual

Starring Rafe Spall, Arsher Ali, Robert James-Collier, Sam Troughton

Directed by David Bruckner

The Story:
College friends Luke (Rafe Spall), Phil (Arsher Ali), Hutch (Robert James-Collier) and Dom (Sam Troughton) travel to the Swedish mountains for a hike in memory of their friend Robert (Paul Reid), who died before being able to take the trip with them.  Luke feels guilt over his death, while his other friends tiptoe around his guilt.

As they trek through the mountains, Dom gets injured and they decide to take a shortcut through the woods, but shortly upon entering they discover a dead animal hanging in the trees, with Runic symbols carved into the trees.  They continue on and find an abandoned house, but after a mysterious night when they all wake up doing something different, they still continue to press on to find civilization, unaware they're being stalked by an eternal being who demands sacrifice - human sacrifice.

The Synopsis:
Director David Bruckner was able to craft some intriguing small horror films with his segments in "V/H/S" and "Southbound," and when it came to directing a full-length horror film for Netflix, he more than rose to the occasion, directing a tense, atmospheric thriller that keeps you riveted on the edge of your seat, eagerly anticipating what will happen next.

The story centers around four friends who embark on a hike in the Swedish mountains, and the scenery is absolutely breathtaking.  During their hike, one man says it makes them feel so small, and the cinematography helps drive that home as it films them from above, mere specks on the screen compared to the grandeur of where they're at.  Yet, while the scenery is awe-inspiring and breathtaking, it's also profoundly dangerous and deadly, no small part due to an eternal being that stalks the woods in the mountains, one that demands sacrifice in order to live forever.

It's this entity - which looks downright terrifying when you finally see it, but Bruckner smartly keeps it hidden in the shadows throughout most of the film, making it all the more terrifying - that stalks our heroes, as they are, as they innocently travel the vast woodland.  There's several shocking scenes where you don't even notice the creature until it makes a sudden movement, jolting you back in shocked silence.  When it's finally revealed for what it is, it sticks true to Swedish folklore and mythology that adds a nice little touch to what could've been an otherwise generic creature feature.

There's two small downfalls to the film, and that lies with the characters and plot.  While the four men have ample screen time and development, ultimately they only serve as fodder for the creature, and you play the traditional game of "who dies next?" without really caring about their fates.  All four men are typecast in their roles - Phil is the ethnic minority, Dom is the less-than-physical whiny guy with glasses,  Hutch is the alpha male, and Luke is the sullen, brooding anti-hero - due entirely to a tragic event that occurred previously where he did nothing to help.  It's this guilt that eats away at him throughout the film, and serves as the elephant in the room - does his friends blame him for their other friend's death?  Does Luke?  Ultimately, it's a moot point because it's never fully developed as most of the run-time consists of them bickering and arguing about what direction to go, and other minor disputes.  Even though they're better written than most, the characters again just provides fresh meat for the creature to devour.

The plot is rather simple, but even that diminishes near the end.  When Luke finds out what the creature is, it's not fully fleshed out.  I can't talk more about it without going into spoiler territory, but there's several unanswered questions the film poses and throws in certain aspects that seem out of place - or at least could've been better explained.  Then the ending had a little to be desired in my opinion - it wouldn't have been how I would've ended it, but since I'm no director, I can't really fault them for that.  Still, despite this, the film is tight and well acted, maintaining a sense of dread throughout, so it accomplished its task.

The Summary:
A tense, edge-of-your-seat creature feature, "The Ritual" blends folklore with terror, providing a truly unique creature and four well-rounded characters in a struggle for survival.

The Score: A