Presence – REVIEW - Price Prediction

Our Editor was eagerly anticipating Steven Soderbergh’s new movie to debut on December 25th, hoping to promote it with the tagline, “Excited for some holiday cheer?” Unfortunately, that didn’t happen. Instead, the film titled ‘Presence‘ is a chilling haunted house production. Despite our Editor’s lack of marketing experience beyond a car boot sale, this movie is another addition to director Steven Soderbergh’s impressive portfolio. Known for his ability to create both high-budget commercial films and more avant-garde projects, the experiment in this film involves telling the story entirely from the ghost’s perspective using a slightly distorted wide-angle lens. The director himself handled the camera during the secret summer shoot at a single house location. The opening shot offers a guided tour of the interior, providing a sense of spatial orientation for what’s to come.

In this house, a real estate agent eager for a swift sale shows it to a family, captivating the heart of mum Rebekah (Lucy Liu), who promptly makes an offer and moves in shortly after. However, this family is burdened with their own troubles. Daughter Chloe (Callina Liang) is grieving the loss of her friend due to a drug overdose, father Chris (Chris Sullivan) has unspecified legal issues, and sports-loving son Tyler enjoys his mother’s undivided attention. A ghost subtly haunts the family, eavesdropping on their private conversations and observing their interactions.

The title “Presence” doesn’t only refer to the ghost; Chris is contemplating leaving Rebekah, Rebekah favors Tyler over a still traumatized Chloe, and Chloe is deeply mourning her friend’s death. These underlying tensions escalate as the ghost becomes more apparent, sometimes subtly and other times boldly. An interesting aspect is that the ghost seems to have a knack for turning off the lights in the house, which are always on, even during the daytime. This could potentially shed light on an ongoing U.S. energy crisis.

The family dynamics unfold in extended single takes, with the narrative abruptly cutting to a black screen before resuming at another significant moment in the house’s history. Essentially, it sets up a conflict between Team Dad & Daughter and Team Mum & Son, portraying them as the good guys, although there are certainly less favorable elements within the family. The storytelling is done in extended single takes that end in an abrupt cut to a black screen before moving on to another event in the house.

As a movie critic, I must confess that “Presence” didn’t deliver the bone-chilling, spine-tingling horror experience that I was expecting from a haunted house film. Rather than plunging us into a terrifying ordeal filled with the usual ghost story tropes, this movie presents a unique take on the supernatural.

In “Presence,” the ghost seems to be stuck in a form of limbo, reminiscent of the 2017 film “A Ghost Story” featuring Rooney Mara, but with Chloe gradually sensing this presence, suspecting it could be her deceased friend. The ghost’s interventions are often benign and particularly centered around Tyler’s new school friend, Ryan (West Mulholland), who harbors feelings for Chloe.

This narrative shift into the realm of thriller unfolds in the third act, with some viewers finding this twist intriguing enough to maintain their interest in a story that, at its core, is quite traditional, given the novelty of being told from a ghost’s perspective. However, for others, this may not be enough to offset the lack of conventional horror elements that they were hoping for.

Here’s the Presence trailer……

2025-01-22 03:23

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