El fantasma del faro

When telling a story, the focus of the plot should never shift from one genre to another. For example, a romance should never morph into a mystery. A whodunit should never morph into a tale of the supernatural. A comedy should never depict an incidence of death or maiming so intense that the audience perceives it to be real. To shift from one genre to another in mid-story jars the audience, causes confusion, and shakes them from their temporary reverie. They are transported back to the real world and the story dies because they can no longer participate in the fictional construct.

"Behind the Wall" is an unsatisfying story because if violates this fundamental tenet. It begins as a horror tale (bloody death of the wife/mother by an unknown force) and a warning not to venture into the basement, then morphs into a ghost story (death was the act of a ghost as opposed to a living monster, human or otherwise), morphs again into the totally unreal (characters go missing, dead bodies appear and disappear - something beyond the ability of even a ghost), then transitions yet again into the tale of an unsettled ghost that can only be pacified by the death of his living betrayer. To further weaken the plot, a priest gives a dire warning but offers zero rationale, and a budding romance is introduced which changes our focus from horror/ghost story to "will boy and girl get together?".

No movie can survive this uneven level of fictional reality regardless of its production quality or acting talent.

The actors in "Behind the Wall" are believable. The story is not.