Nocebo

1) Watch it without reading anything about this movie. There are no mind-blowing twists but you will enjoy it more if you don't know anything about the plot. Some things that happened are not difficult to predict, but still, their reveal is shocking.

2) During the first 10-ish minutes, i thought that this was going to be a mediocre to bad movie. I was wrong. This is getting better by the minute. The ending is shattering, i liked it very much.

3) Stil, it's flawed. Green and Strong are very good actors but i didn't love the acting here. Definitely not bad though. Chai Fonacier steals the show, she was amazing. Furthermore, this is a forgettable movie, not exactly formulaic and predictable but definitely not groundbreaking and original either. In any case, I believe it's better than the average movie of this genre.

4) So, if you wanna watch a good psychological-drama horror movie, watch NOCEBO. Not scary, not mindless fun, but a nice movie to spent 96 minutes. I would even call it daring for an American movie, due to its script.

This is a film that will sneaks up on you with how good and effective it is as horror mystery. The central relationship in this film is between Christine (Eva Green) a fashion designer who suddenly falls to a mysterious and debilitating illness, and her Filipino helper Diana (played by the wonderful discovery Chai Fonacier) who appears from nowhere and starts taking care of Christine using unorthodox methods that alarms Christine's husband Felix (Mark Strong). Diana has drive and determination, but her motives and agendas are mysterious, is she a snake-oil salesman taking advantage of Christine? Or is she un altruistic healer who wants to take care of her? By the end of the film, you will realize this is a horror film that delivers the goods, and it all ties up its threads logically. It's not a very scary horror film, but it's thoughtful and it's cathartic. I really like this one and I highly recommend it.

In Nocebo, everything deserves praise. The story and the themes and ideas it deals with, performances of the cast, soundtrack, direction, screenplay, creepy and tense atmosphere, horror elements, cinematography, and ending all deserve all praise without any exception.

Regarding the flaws, the only flaw that I saw in the movie was some horror scenes which were, from my point of view, unnecessary and a little bit disgusting. Rather than that, everything else was perfect.

I liked Nocebo so much, and I wish that they make more psychological movies which are even deeper in the future. That is why when it comes to score, I gladly give Nocebo 9 out of 10.

I like this film.

Right from the start you can tell that real time and effort has been put in to creating a well rounded and immersive story - something adults will appreciate.

The acting by Eva Green and Chai Fonacier is superb in realising wholly believable characters you can relate to right from the start.

Unfortunately, and this is my only slight criticism, is. Mark Strong's character seemed very one dimensional and wooden. It didn't gel well with the rest of talent displayed by Green and Fonacier and stood out as being under par in the face of their skill.

You may well guess what the general plot is quite early on in the film, but perhaps that is by design and adds to the connection with the characters.

All in all worth watching, and I will certainly watch it again in the future.

Nocebo: Filipino Folk Horror, though this is an Irish/Filipino Co-Production and was shot in Dublin and the Philippines the Western parts of the film are set in London. Christine (Eva Green), is a fashion designer who is suffering from a strange illness for which she has to take multiple pills. We see how it started when she had a vision of a wild dog covered in ticks, one of the ticks bites her, perhaps it's all in her mind but her work is suffering as is her relationship with her husband Felix (Mark Strong) and daughter Bobs (Billie Gadsdon). A woman named Diana (Chai Fonacier), turns up claiming that Christine has hired her a carer/housekeeper, by this stage Christine had been subject to serious memory failures so she accepts it. Diana helps Christine with massages and exercises, she then moves on to to use Filipino folk healing techniques. However things take a darker turn after Diana sets up an altar in the fireplace in her room. There are parallel narratives at play in Nocebo, we also see Diana's life from childhood onward, how she developed folk healing skills and the many traumatic events which befell her. The switch from folk healing to folk magic is sharply portrayed, the stronger powers are used to torture and inflict. Pain. There are some really disturbing scenes, both everyday violence and suffering as well as that inflicted through supernatural means. Intricate rituals based on a syncretic religion are carried out. Not so many jump shocks but terror gradually builds up in front of your eyes, The split narrative is confusing at times but all coalesces for the finale. There are some plot twists but you'll have to watch Nocebo if you want to know about them. Directed by Lorcan Finnegan from a screenplay by Garret Shanley. 8/10.