Attachment

A Danish/English horror movie that delves into several fears: an overbearing partner's parent, a potential dark history of the partner, and evil spirits known as dybbuks. Although the writer and director, Gabriel Bier Gisalson, brings emotional depth to the story in his directorial debut, the film doesn't quite deliver and becomes drawn out by the end.

The relationship between Danish actress Maja (Josephine Park) and London academic Leah (Ellie Kendrick) starts out strong, with charming chemistry between the two women. However, things take a turn when Leah has a seizure and her pushy mother, Chana (Sofie Gråbøl), becomes involved in their relationship. Chana's strange behavior and interest in Jewish iconography creates a sense of unease that slowly builds as the story progresses.

The film attempts to set its horror within Jewish mythology and Ultra-Orthodox life, but this creates an exposition overload that distances the viewer. The strongest aspect of the film is its rumination on the universal worries of a relationship, particularly the fear of a partner changing who they are and leaving heartbreak. The acting, particularly by Sofie Gråbøl, adds to the disturbing dynamic of the story. Although "Attachment" has its moments, it becomes slow and too drawn out to be a fully successful horror movie.

This film is described as horror, and it could be called that, amongst other things.

What is happening here? Well, there's a possession, but this surely is no The Exorcist! It's a Danish film, and we really haven't got a great history in either horror or scary films. But is this really a horror film, I would say partly. It is as someone is trying to make it into more than that. But what? It's really hard to say, for me that is. I try to find what this is all about. The reason is, that Danish films very seldom just try to be, for instance, funny, entertaining or just plain scary (or anything really). There's gotta be more than what's seems obvious. So whay is it this time? Is it an attack at religion, homosexuality, jews or?

Perhaps it's just me searching for something that is not supposed to be there, perhaps it's just plain horror? If so, it's not really that scary. It has the very annoying ending that most horror film has, you really can't tell if the whole thing really have ended.

There's not anything to say against the actors, they do a very good job, especially Park and Kendrick.

Truth be told I'm really not a horror fan, so if you are, you probably have to see for yourself.

A horror film relying on Jewish folklore, religious allegories, and codependency that falls into a disappointing resolution. Attachment shows the beginning of the relationship between Maja and Leah after meeting in a library. Quickly they'll develop feelings but without knowing much of each others life. This sparks the tension in the couple after Leah suffered a seizure forcing them both to travel to London to Leah's mother house and Maja realizes that a secret is hold in between the walls. From the moment Leah returns home her mother insists in doing everything for her even when she's capable of doing it on her own.

Maja and Leah's mother Chana relationship starts with the wrong foot and Maja's efforts only pushes them further. Once the plot twist appears everything starts to make sense and their relationship can finally develop. Sadly, towards the end the film becomes another generic possession horror movie. What starts as a strong, original, captivating horror film turns into a disappointment in the third act. The acting, score, cinematography, and story converge on a satisfying exploration of family dynamics and superstitions. Unfortunately, the ending takes away from the excellence that the film presented at the beginning.

Certainly a must watch film for fans of the genre. The casting, cinematography, acting, scores and writing are all very good. There were only a couple things which held it back from being a true great.

The first is that despite that it's a horror movie with an 18+ rating it isn't very scary at all. There are some good creepy elements here and there and the mood gets rather spooky from time to time but it never comes close to a full follow through and give you any dread or fear that you might come to expect with these types of films. Instead it's replaced with an element of mystery which does do a pretty good job of keeping you interested but very far away from being horrified.

The next thing I took issue with is despite the frequency of sex scenes, you never see any 18+ nudity - now I'm not saying that from the viewpoint of one who seeks out films filled with cheap pornographic material from plastic actresses. The camera work, lighting and makeup takes a very cinematic approach - the actresses are made to look like real people you could encounter in the street - they have laugh lines and blemishes, their makeup isn't always done and their hair doesn't always look perfect but yet they are quite attractive none the less. It all comes together to create a sense of realism that's quite submersible and effective. But watching numerous sex scenes unfold without seeing a bare behind or even a bare breast make an appearance but instead two people making love and staying unnaturally fully covered I found created contrast to the otherwise realistic and raw tone the rest of the film seemed to adhere to. In short it just seemed out of place and offbeat and gave the feeling of something being missing from the experience.

While the twist at the end was predictable and formulaic it didn't conclude the film in the exact way that I was expecting so i'll award half points for its conclusion. All in all I would certainly recommend that genre fans give it a watch - while it's not very scary it also doesn't rely on cheap jump scares and instead gives an honest effort towards creating a good atmospheric mystery with some horror elements and it's certainly worth your time.

Attachment offers a refreshing angle in the horror genre by combining queer romance with Jewish folklore, something rarely seen onscreen. Director Gabriel Bier Gislason crafts a story that's as much about cultural identity and maternal control as it is about demonic possession.

Josephine Park and Ellie Kendrick have genuine chemistry, and their relationship feels warm and lived-in, grounding the film emotionally. The Copenhagen-to-London shift brings an intriguing change in tone, with Sofie Gråbøl's portrayal of the overbearing mother adding an undercurrent of unease that grows steadily.

However, while the film handles its characters with care, the horror elements feel subdued. The mythology is fascinating but not fully explored, and the tension never quite peaks. It's more eerie than terrifying, and the pacing falters in the final act.

Final verdict: Attachment is heartfelt and thematically rich, with strong performances and cultural nuance. But as a horror film, it plays things a little too safe-leaving it more touching than terrifying. A modest success with a unique voice.