Movie Review: “Let Us Prey” Is Reminiscent Of Early John Carpenter

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Held in a remote police station, a mysterious stranger takes over the minds and souls of everyone inside.

“Let us Prey” is how a psychological horror thriller is supposed to be made. None of the “Saw” or “Hostel” movies come remotely close to the brilliant visual conception of director Brian O’Malley’s nightmarish vision. Mr. O’Malley was obviously very heavily influenced by horror maestro John Carpenter because he brings to his film, the simplest nuances and gradual narrative progression that Mr. Carpenter’s earlier classics, “Halloween,” “The Fog” and “The Thing,” encompassed. The handheld camera technique that is so prevalent in so many of today’s movies, is one of the worst inventions in cinematic history and thankfully, Mr. O’Malley rejects this gimmick in favor of beautiful widescreen static cinematography accompanied by slow-moving tracking shots that advance in on their primary subjects, allowing the scene to unfold around them.

Not since early Carpenter, has a supernatural thriller been so intriguing that it keeps you glued to the screen to the very last shot and considering that this is Mr. O’Malley’s feature-film directorial debut, I literally cannot wait to see what’s next. As the story begins, we are introduced to PC. Rachel Heggie (Pollyanna McIntosh), who has just relocated to a small, remote Scottish town in the middle of nowhere. On her way into the police station on her first day of work, she navigates the quiet empty streets where she happens upon a stranger. Standing some distance from her, she cannot quite make out his face but before she has a chance to do anything else, a speeding car comes out of nowhere and knocks him down. The driver is Caesar (Brian Vernel), a teenager who has been drinking but when they both go looking for a body, there is none to be found.

She quickly arrests him and when she reaches the jail, her commanding officer, Sgt. MacReady (Douglas Russell), is only too familiar with the youth and throws him into a cell for the night. MacReady is immediately antagonistic towards her as are the only other two police officers stationed there, PC. Jack Warnock (Bryan Larkin) and PC. Jennifer Mundie (Hanna Stanbridge), who all seem aggravated at having to accommodate a new recruit. Shortly thereafter, the man that Rachel saw get hit by the car, appears in the doorway with a bloody gash on the side of his head. Because of his refusal to speak, MacReady puts him in a cell while they try to find out who he is. It’s at this point that the film kicks into high gear. The stranger, or Six as he eventually says his name is, knows everyone’s deepest, darkest secrets and one by one, he makes it known to each of them.

By a simple touch of their hand or by just being in close proximity with him, each person experiences flashes of the bad things they’ve done in their lives and gradually, they begin to realize that Six is not a man but someone, something much worse. As each individual is reminded of some of their past heinous crimes, transgressions that only they were cognizant of, one by one, they slowly become unhinged until Rachel must hold down the police station by herself against that which is outside but also that from within. Watching the story unfold and indeed, listening to Six speak ambiguously to each person until such time that they become mindful of what he is saying, is filmmaking at its very best. Not since “Reservoir Dogs” has a movie shot in one primary location held my attention so intensely.

Director Brian O’Malley knows movies. He knows directors. He knows film styles. Even one of the central characters, Sgt. MacReady, is a nod to John Carpenter’s early masterpiece, “The Thing,” in which Kurt Russell played the aforementioned character. “Let Us Prey” is a modern day masterpiece and it’s been a long time since a story of this magnitude came out of the U.K. The last film that comes to mind is “28 Days Later” and that movie alone, pretty much reinvigorated the zombie genre. Maybe “Let Us Prey” will rejuvenate the supernatural thriller and if that’s the case, I can’t wait to see what happens next!

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