The Last Will and Testament of Rosalind Leigh requires patience and understanding, the story starts with a 5 minute monologue by some unseen character who basically tells Leon's family background and his problems with his mother and father, who were members of a cult. At first I thought it was lazy writing, getting a voice-over to introduce the character and his struggles instead of doing so through his actions, but I sat through it because I'd been looking for this film for some time now, but as the film progressed it became clear that Leon's not the main character, his mother is. However, the constant voice-overs explaining her failing relationship with her son get a bit annoying.
For the average viewer, this film requires some patience, it's not something to watch with friends on a Friday night. It's slow and quiet and the gorgeous photography just adds to the overall tone of the film, it's fortunately short on cheap jump scares, but that doesn't mean it doesn't get super creepy at times.
Some things rubbed me the wrong way, though. (SPOILERS) One of the scariest moments in the film (at least in my opinion)involves Leon sitting on the floor with a phone in his hand and the sound of footsteps around him and nothing more. What you can't see ends up being scarier than what you do see, which is an unconvincing CGI creature.
The end was both sad and confusing. Some things are left unexplained and I felt like Leon's ordeal with the creepy creature and scary angels didn't matter at all or were just his mother's way to beg for his son's attention and none of the characters evolve, Leon's an unbeliever and he remains that way and his mother remains alone.
It's a beauty to see for its photography and melancholic atmosphere, but the story unfortunately falls short and for a horror film it also falls short on scares, but maybe because it's sadder than it is sinister.
For me it's a 6.5, I really hope to see more from this director.
For the average viewer, this film requires some patience, it's not something to watch with friends on a Friday night. It's slow and quiet and the gorgeous photography just adds to the overall tone of the film, it's fortunately short on cheap jump scares, but that doesn't mean it doesn't get super creepy at times.
Some things rubbed me the wrong way, though. (SPOILERS) One of the scariest moments in the film (at least in my opinion)involves Leon sitting on the floor with a phone in his hand and the sound of footsteps around him and nothing more. What you can't see ends up being scarier than what you do see, which is an unconvincing CGI creature.
The end was both sad and confusing. Some things are left unexplained and I felt like Leon's ordeal with the creepy creature and scary angels didn't matter at all or were just his mother's way to beg for his son's attention and none of the characters evolve, Leon's an unbeliever and he remains that way and his mother remains alone.
It's a beauty to see for its photography and melancholic atmosphere, but the story unfortunately falls short and for a horror film it also falls short on scares, but maybe because it's sadder than it is sinister.
For me it's a 6.5, I really hope to see more from this director.