[Review] Depicting Grief at it’s Most Vulnerable in Shudder’s The Twin
Grief is not linear, it fluctuates. There’s no wrong way to feel or to express grief at the loss of a loved one⸺especially a child. Directed by Taneli Mustonen, Shudder’s The Twin depicts the story of a family that is trying to come out the other side of losing their son (and twin brother), Nathan, after a tragic car accident. Rachel (Teresa Palmer), husband Anthony (Steven Cree), and surviving son Eliot (Tristan Ruggeri) in an effort to heal, the family make the move across the world to a small Flemish community where Anthony grew up. Whilst settling into their new community, Rachel befriends the local “outcast” Helen, who gives many foreboding messages for the new family.
After settling into their new town, Rachel begins to notice that Eliot is behaving strangely, talking to himself, asking for a bed for his deceased brother, and digging up items from their backyard memorial to Nathan. As the film continues, we witness Rachel having incredibly realistic and terrifying nightmares regarding her sons, including recurring nightmares where she loses Eliot in tragic and horrible ways. Wanting to find answers to what she is experiencing, Rachel starts to investigate the foreboding signs that she is seeing in her dreams visceral to the point that she begins to suspect that her small community is involved in the supernatural elements working against her. She progressively spirals into a world of cults, demons, and the occult, the plot getting a tad muddy and untraceable in some moments. The story is interesting and does provide some incredibly gripping and chilling scenes, however, some of the plot could have been sacrificed for the sake of time.
Drawing on techniques and elements that we typically see in folk horror movies, The Twin explores a variety of subject matter that are displayed in an interesting and exciting way. While the tropes are nothing new to the genre, they feel refreshing and exhilarating as we witness Rachel attempt to make sense of the supernatural exploits going on in her home and the surrounding woodlands. The supernatural elements are intriguing and add a sense of foreboding to the already bleak and heart-breaking story of Rachel, Anthony, and Eliot as a family unit. Writers Taneli Mustonen and Aleksi Hyvärinen approach the subject matter in a way that demonstrates a viewpoint that is respectful. Without giving too much away, the twist that the plot takes was unexpected and gut wrenching as the truth was revealed.
The Twin moves at a slow pace, building the story piece by piece to create a slow-burn atmosphere. The story arc suffers through the incorporation of Helen’s storyline and involvement in the narrative. It would have been easier to leave Helen out altogether as it wouldn’t impact the development of the film and its characters. The film builds the horror through suspenseful night-time scenes that get progressively spine-chilling as they occur more often throughout. Washed in blue light, the eeriness of the house and the supernatural moments are elevated through the beautiful cinematography of Daniel Lindholm (Lake Bodom). There are moments of tranquility that are broken by chaotic and frantic scenes of Rachel breaking the silence, these contribute to her stunning portrayal of a grieving mother. There are moments of confusion as the dialogue between Rachel and Anthony is sometimes jarring and odd at the expense of what could have been a well curated scene without dialogue.
Leading to a rather large buildup, the ending was heartbreaking and demonstrates how deep grief can run in our psyche’s destroying the parts of ourselves that we once knew to be true. We see Rachel truly losing herself in a way that was unpredictable and done in a way that explored mental health in a relatively amiable manner. Whilst the film is quite long, each moment seems to have purpose and adds to the film in a positive way rather than detract or distract the audience. The Twin shares a tragic story of loss, grief, and losing oneself to sadness and the ever-longing feeling that a mother will have for their child.
The Twin is now streaming on AMC Networks, Shudder.
