By GRACE DETWILER
Starring Jena Malone, Danny Huston, Dame Janet Suzman
Written by Christopher Smith, Laurie Cook
Directed by Christopher Smith
IFC Films and Shudder
Shot in the hills of Scotland, from British filmmaker Christopher Smith (Triangle, Black Death), CONSECRATION puts a new spin on religious horror by positing that the forces responsible for spiritual afflictions such as possession may instead be protective entities capable of defending their hosts rather than simply harming them. Starring Jena Malone (The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, The Neon Demon) and Danny Huston (30 Days of Night, American Horror Story: Coven) CONSECRATION is an understated examination of grief, trauma, the horror of Catholic iconography. While CONSECRATION reaches for a more significant message critiquing the worldview of the Catholic Church, it is more successful in its aesthetic pursuits. The story itself relies heavily on the strength of its extremely talented cast.
CONSECRATION follows the non-believing doctor Grace (Malone) after she learns of the suspicious suicide of her brother Michael, a priest at the Mount Saviour Convent in Scotland. Grace travels to the convent in the company of a detective (Thoren Ferguson), where she meets the resident Mother Superior (Suzman), Father Romero (Huston), and a collection of oddly-behaving nuns, who have little more purpose than their inherent creep-factor. The creepiest nuns of all are played by stand-outs Eilidh Fisher and Alexandra Lewis, who each seem to have it out for Grace, given her supposed spiritual uncleanness.
As Grace soon learns, she has been the lifelong host to a demonic entity – one with a mysterious link to Grace and Michael’s abusive father who was imprisoned for killing their mother. In order to uncover the true cause of her brother’s death, Grace must confront supernatural forces she never believed were real, and eventually, submit to a ritual of consecration performed by the clergy of Mount Savior. What happens next is a plot twist worthy of Shyamalan himself.
In its final third, CONSECRATION attempts to spin the traditional possession tale on its head by suggesting that the nature of the entity itself is not evil, but instead a source of immense power for the possessed. As such, the church becomes the enemy standing in the way of a woman who has only begun to unlock her true power, autonomy, and agency. Whether the film achieves this goal will depend on the viewer. Undeniable, however, is the strength of CONSECRATION’s core performances by Malone, Huston, and industry veteran Janet Suzman.
Suzman is deeply unnerving as the nefarious Mother Superior and plays the bad cop to Danny Huston’s good cop. Posing as an ally to Jena Malone’s character, Father Romero is able to gain Grace’s trust, much to her eventual detriment. As always, Jena Malone is a singular screen presence with a knack for playing extreme personalities, as in The Neon Demon, or subdued personalities in extreme circumstances, as is the case in CONSECRATION. When she finally realizes what Mother Superior and Father Romero have in store for her, as Grace, Malone easily makes the switch from a restrained woman of science to a divine being capable of reaching through time and space to exert her influence on the world around her.
CONSECRATION began its theatrical run on February 10th and will be available to rent on VOD/digital platforms on March 3rd.
