Housebound (2014)

3 1/2 Stars (out of 4)

Dwell Knell

By Jeffrey M. Anderson

Combining a ghost hunt and murder story with a craftily wry sense of humor and genuinely likable, broken characters, this horror/thriller has good scares and atmosphere, but it also has heart.

Small-time thief Kylie Bucknell (Morgana O'Reilly) is arrested after a bungled robbery and sentenced to house arrest in her childhood home, under the care of her chatty mother, Miriam (Rima Te Wiata). Security man Amos (Glen-Paul Waru) explains how her ankle bracelet works, and that any attempt to leave the property or tamper with the device will send him a signal.

Kylie is immediately miserable, but things get worse when strange things start happening, like a toy bear seemingly attacking her or doors mysteriously opening by themselves. Amos, an amateur paranormal investigator, jumps in to help. They discover that their home used to be a halfway house and that a young girl was brutally murdered there. Could it be her ghost trying to communicate? Or something more sinister?

The feature writing and directing debut of New Zealander Gerard Johnstone — who went on to make M3GAN — Housebound is almost relaxed in its confidence. Its opening scene, the botched robbery, is a brilliant masterclass in how to get a point across using only visuals and sounds. (The first sound we hear, the car scraping over a speed bump in a parking lot, is crucial.)

The scene is also a great introduction to the unflappable Kylie, whose first reaction to most things is an eyeroll, an exasperated sigh, or a barked profanity. But when she gets to her mother's house, we begin to truly understand her, and their relationship. (It's maybe not so far off from our own.)

Amos is a great character as well, a nerd, but comfortable in his own skin. When these folks begin tackling their intruder problem, it's engaging, because we know them. Plus, they're not scaredy-cats. Even the final line spoken in Housebound is pitch-perfect. It may not win over non-genre fans, but for others, it's worth seeking out.