Altar

The Altar is a ghost story in the classic tradition. Meg (Olivia Williams), Alec (Matthew Modine) and their children move in to a decrepit Yorkshire mansion whilst Meg restores it for the owner. Over the next couple of months the haunted nature of the house becomes apparent, with the usual banging sounds, slamming doors and ethereal appearances. Most of the film relies heavily on Olivia Williams and she does an OK job, with Matthew Modine limping in towards the end.

Undoubtedly, the film borrows heavily from other ghost and spirit films, most notably The Shining, but it was almost like playing bingo, identifying tropes from other films as it progressed, such as The Exorcist, Don't Look Now, etc. The TV movie feel and austere feel of the grand old house give a 1970s drama feel to the film. Some may associated this with quality drama, some with cheap production values.

There are some plus points: the old Yorkshire mansion and it's windswept grounds give a good background feeling, and the explicit pictures of the ghosts is usual and scarier than most in the genre - more like The Grudge than Turn of the Screw.

Overall, I was left with the question, why? Did this movie really need to be made?

I sat down to watch the 2014 movie here in 2019 solely because it was a horror movie and because I hadn't seen it before. I can't claim to have ever heard about the movie, nor did I know who starred in it prior to finding it by sheer random chance.

The storyline in "Altar" was fairly adequately. It was, however, suffering from being sort of generic and also from having way too little happening throughout the course of the entire movie. This made the movie feel rather prolonged and tedious, to be honest. And I must admit that my interest in the movie dwindled as the story trotted on and on with director and writer Nick Willing at the helm.

For a horror mystery "Altar" was lacking horror elements, so the mystery labeling of the genre would be more accurate. There simply was nothing scary anywhere in the movie, despite the fact that director Nick Willing was eagerly trying with some jump scares and stereotypical scenes to spook the audience. The only problem with this was, that it simply didn't work.

The atmosphere in the movie was adequate, and definitely had potential to add a lot of flavor to the movie. But this wasn't really properly utilized, and it just sort of fizzled without any greater effect.

As for the acting in the movie, well Olivia Williams and Matthew Modine definitely carried the movie quite well.

All in all, then "Altar" was a less than mediocre movie in terms of entertainment value and enjoyment. It was watchable, for sure. But it was hardly a particularly memorable or outstanding movie. For me, this 2014 movie will fade into oblivion without leaving a lasting impression on me. There are far better horror movies readily available if you enjoy a proper horror movie.

A young family move to an isolated house which the mother has been hired to restore only to discover that presences still linger casting a hold over her artist sculpturing husband.

Taking a leaf from a James Herbert novel and channelling countless haunted films Altar is an effective ghost story chiller, however, what sets director/writer Nick Willing's offering apart are the practical and some special effects which have an optical natural feel as opposed to the usual ineffective blatant CGI.

Willing delivers some genuinely eerie visuals and creepy moments, this coupled with a great score and on location shoot help give some credence and atmosphere to the proceedings. Matthew Modine's Hamilton sports a Shining Jack Torrence like woollen jumper (the writer character is replaced here by an artist) and mimics Torrence's transformation (although quite speedy) still Modine gives an intense performance. Both the younger actors are effective, actress Antonia Clarke is notable as Penny. Olivia Williams gives convincing performance which complements the naturalistic writing and setting.

While it breaks no new ground in terms of ghost stories or twist endings it's a solid old school British horror.

Atmospheric haunted house horror about a designer who moves her husband and kids into a spooky Yorkshire manor she has been hired to restore. Beautifully shot on location, director/screenwriter Nick Willing makes the most of the subdued, wild beauty of the Yorkshire moors. I wish we had a better sense of the gorgeous house the family takes over -- for all the reliance on secret rooms and bricked up passageways, the internal layout of the house remains vague and generic. Also less defined than they should be are the couple's two children, who we don't get to know very well. This makes the peril they are in less compelling than it could be. Olivia Williams does a great job as the emotional center of the film, trying to hold her family together in the face of mounting financial pressures and a menacing presence that seems to grow more powerful. Like many such stories, the supernatural here is an expression of the resentments and strains that have crept into William's marriage to her failed artist husband, played by a miscast Matthew Modine. While it doesn't break any new ground, "Altar" builds and mostly maintains a high creepiness factor, especially when Modine discovers a new medium and new canvas for his art. This is a good, old-fashioned, restrained horror film, well worth checking out.

I love a good ghost story. I practically worship a great ghost story. Sadly, Altar is neither. It has its moments, and it's not a complete waste of time to watch, but in my opinion it started with all the makings of a truly interesting story and mixed it all up into a batch of...mixed up.

The true star of the film is its Yorkshire manor location. Now, if I'd been handed this set to work with (and if I, you know, actually made movies), Altar is NOT the story I'd have come up with. I actually felt a bit annoyed at the movie for not living up to such a classic haunted house setting! The premise was simple enough, and it started out in fairly contemporary spooky fashion, but there was just not the right kind of follow through. Rather than spine tingles and after-view thoughts about mortality, the climax delivered only a mash-up of effects and incoherent, half-explored themes.

I will say this: the actors who played the children did great. Williams did fine in her role, and even Modine did the best he could with what he was given (his character was the biggest mess in the mix, with some truly uncomfortable scenes - and not in a horror/mystery sort of way).

Generally, you could do a lot worse for your hour and a half, but if you want a great haunted house / ghost story, look elsewhere. It's been done a thousand times better at least hundreds of times already.