The Last Will and Testament of Rosalind Leigh

let's face it, the majority of horror movies out there just aren't that scary. so, if you're a horror fan - ask yourself this question:

When was the last time I watched a horror movie that ACTUALLY gave me the chills?

if you came up with a movie or two that truly got under your skin at one point or another during the film(s), you know that those involved with those movies are true horror fans. The Last Will and Testament of Rosalind Leigh is also one of those types of horror movies.

for his first go at a full length, Rodrigo Gudiño let everyone know that he's here for one reason only: to strike genuine fear via filmmaking. granted, the premise is something you've seen a million times. without saying too much, the premise is the straight forward 'Alone In the House' approach. which usually is an indicator that the movie you are about to see is something you'll forget about five minutes afterwards because you've seen it a million times.

if you can appreciate the technical side of filmmaking, then you can appreciate the way The Last Testament was made. speaking honestly, i can say that about five minutes in i already judged this movie with a "Yep. Here we go. AGAIN..." attitude. i imagined a bunch of first year film students critiquing every shot and pointing out technical 'mistakes' with such aspects like lighting, camera work, acting, this, that, and whatever else they bore each other with.

but there's something to keep in mind: Gudiño focuses on the story. he puts all his eggs into the first step in filmmaking - writing a good story FIRST, then move along to the other stuff. which doesn't always apply to horror movies (although, sometimes that's not a bad thing.) this story is the most important part. so if the snarky film students point out every little rookie mistake with the filmmaking process of a rookie first film, so be it. in ten years, the jokes on them. in ten years they'll realize Gudiño's first attempt was only his warm up. his foot in the door. while they're sitting around forcing out critiques and secretly wishing they were in Gudiño's director chair.

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This, my fellow movie watchers, is where we catch a glimpse of true artistry. Most of us know that the reason that the horror genre gets such terrible ratings most the time is because we've all seen the same crap over and over again. And it gets old after a while. We can thank directors like Alfred Hitchcock for making practically every original thought for horror films. But dare I say it, I should emphasize the "practically." This movie, was awesome. It didn't try to pull every popular string to draw the mainstream audience in (that is addicted to seeing the same trash show up over and over again and call it "scary") and it didn't seek to simply get views and something to watch once to say you did to all your friends. This film actually requires the audience to work. I know, daunting task right? Almost a horror in itself. But come on, aren't we a little tired of just having most if not all the answers come to us, with very few questions asked? This film shot down the traditional and gave us a little originality, something that is VERY hard to find. Give it a watch and see for yourself. SPOILER ALERT: Yes, the ending is abrupt. Yes, it may leave you wanting more. But isn't that an amazing feeling? Tell me another recent film ESPECIALLY in the horror category that actually left you wanting a sequel? I can't name one. I doubt I could even name one if I gave it some thought, which I won't bother to do because like my belief in God I have faith that the horror movies I've seen lately excluding Rosalind Leigh seriously suck and aren't worth remembering. Trust me, I am hard on movies.

If you like both a film that asks you questions and is deeply metaphorically and religiously compelling, watch this movie.

This movie has a very low rating, one that it does NOT deserve. As this movie is more of a suspense building religious horror film designed for people who are interested in watching an intelligent "Hitchcock style" film that will grind on your nerves and make you look twice in the shadows. I am afraid that many viewers were expecting a slasher style blood and guts jump-scare movie. Not so with this one. Ghosts, demons and dark iconology scare the viewer into a dark place. This is a good film, one that achieves its goal of installing terror and making you think about it afterwards. Bravo to the director on creating something unique in a genre overrun with splatter fest and cheap gore.

Watch this one if you have a keen intelligence and want something different.

Leon has recently inherited his mother's home after her death. Before her death, his mother was a member of a rather odd cult who worship angels. Taking up residence, he explores the old, creepy and rather labyrinthine house that has statues of angels everywhere. However, Leon soon realises that there's more to his mother's house and her life than meets the eye. He also starts to realise that maybe he's not alone in the house. And maybe, his mother put so much faith in angels to protect her. Protect her from something that may now have its eye on Leon himself...

The Last Will & Testament of Rosalind Leigh has so much potential. It has a gorgeous set design and a nicely ominous tone and impending sense of dread, as well as an effective and decidedly haunting voice-over from Vanessa Redgrave. Unfortunately though after the half way mark it just kinda falls flat and comes across as having some very nice ideas that unfortunately either aren't executed well or else just simply discarded. As a result the film feels decidedly dissatisfying and concludes in an unexpectedly abrupt manner that ultimately leaves the viewer feeling slightly cheated.

That having said it has a nice atmosphere, is absorbing enough for the first half and marks the feature debut of Rue Morgue Magazine editor & president Rodrigo Gudino. While it ultimately didn't work for me, I do think that Gudino has a lot of promise and is certainly talented and I'll definitely be keeping an eye out for him in future.

5/10, a film that I personally was disappointed in, but ultimately worth a look as I suspect it's a film that'll polarize fans overall.

A slowly developing, atmospheric ghost story. Acting was great. The sets were Awesome. The plot was great. Overall the film felt great. What was missing though was a great soundtrack, but overall I just think this film was just great.

This movie is very subtle, slowly developing and intelligent. What this absolutely is not is a cliché ghost movie.

I have no clue why this film has so poor review on IMDb as of 2013, 5.7. Everyone with a mature mind and refined tastes should absolutely appreciate this film. I was actually scared for once. I guess I have seen about 50+ horror movies in my lifetime and most of the time they fail to frighten me.

Good viewing for mature, quiet audiences. Like somebody else already wrote in their review, keep an eye on this director/writer Rodrigo Gudiño. We got a fresh out of school master film maker making his mark on the world here. Keep doing what you're doing Mr. director and next time get a decent soundtrack for your film.