Night of the Senior Living

 

Following the string of hot but horrible twentysomethings-in-terror movies I've watched as of late, nothing was more welcome than a story about seniors. Sadly the selection is slim, but thankfully, also very mighty. 

Quick Plot: Retired ballet instructor Judith (the always splendid Barbara Hershey) celebrates her 70th birthday surrounded by family and former students, happily embracing her golden years only to collapse. Though mentally and physically fit, Parkinson's is beginning to take a toll, leaving the widowed Judith to book herself new residency at a senior living facility.

Her distant daughter supports the move, though teen grandson Josh is devastated. Judith practically raised the boy, and their connection runs deep. 

At first, Judith's new digs seem less than ideal, but livable. Her roommate is nearly catatonic, but a pleasant nurse helps lead her to the in-crowd: sassy Ruth (the late Fran Bennett) and Trish (The Taking of Deborah Logan's Jill Larson), and catch of the nursing home, Roland (my silver fox Bruce Davison). Much like a college theater department, an available, viable straight male probably does well in a nursing home environment. 

It's not quite enough to please Judith, especially as residents seem to start dying off in rapid succession. Judith begins to have wild incidences at night, brushed off as nightmares that can be cured with sedatives by the staff. Even her beloved Josh has a hard time believing her when the facility's doctor shows evidence of Judith's own health declining.

This being a horror movie, we all side with Judith, and it's nearly impossible not to with Hershey's performance. How divine to see an actor like her in this role. Judith is, and the script acknowledges, far more spry than most of her age bracket, but this is still a story that embraces what it means to age. 

The Manor is written and directed by Axelle Carolyn, someone who has steadily been building a career in the genre. I haven't loved some of her output (her flashback episode of The Haunting of Bly Manor felt like a big tonal misfire) but The Manor is genuinely excellent, and a hugely exciting sign of what she can do. Despite being about senior citizens, it feels incredibly fresh in its approach and deeply satisfying in execution. What a pleasure. 

High Points

I won't spoil the delicious ending, but it was incredibly satisfying in a way I didn't see coming

Low Points

The Manor has a very small scale, which makes sense once you understand it was part of Amazon's "Welcome to the Blumhouse" series. Much like Hulu's Into the Dark, these are lower-budget, shorter running length films. I get the sense that The Manor could have been even more effective in terms of its gothic tone with a few more bucks behind it

Lessons Learned

I'm a cat person and can't imagine life without the feline monsters, but maybe, just MAYBE, they're not the best animals to have on staff at a nursing home

One must earn the ability to use bad language

No one can live long enough to deserve the horrors of a children's choir

Rent/Bury/Buy

At a spry 90 minutes, The Manor is the perfect Sunday morning spooky watch. It won't necessarily give you nightmares, but it taps into something very deep regarding aging, while also maintaining a grand sense of fun. Have a watch on Amazon Prime.