• Release year: 2025
• Director: Daniel J. Phillips.
• Producers: Grant Hardie, Vasili Papanicolou, Mark Patterson, Daniel J. Phillips, and Silvio Salom.
• Screenplay by: Mike Harding and Daniel J. Phillips.
• Cinematography by: Michael Tessari.
• Music by: Will Spartalis.

Shotgun Commentary: creepy villain, messy victims.

Review

Diabolic is the kind of folk horror story that features just enough reality to make it uncomfortable from the very beginning. It does a great job at keeping you guessing while low-key wanting everyone to die, which makes the whole experience rather entertaining.

The film follows Elise (Elizabeth Cullen) a young woman who suffers from blackouts. As the survivor of a Mormon faction, her trauma is understandable. However, those blackouts usually have violent—and sometimes deadly—consequences. Seeing as she is only getting worse, her therapist has a revolutionary idea: to expose her to the location where her traumatic experience took place and to ask the healers of her ex-cult to treat her. So yes, “revolutionary idea” in this case just means a plain dumb and clearly desperate course of action. Still, this is but one out of many, MANY ridiculous decisions that will result in a delightful horror story.

This terrible course of action leads Elise, her boyfriend Adam (John Kim) and her best friend Gwen (Mia Challis) to the middle of nowhere, where they find a random wooden cabin in a clearing. That cabin is where her cult baptised dead people through living members of the cult, which is the opening scene of the film. One car, one cabin, miles of forest all around… the setup is as promising as can be, but if you are expecting irresolvable car troubles, broken cellphones and the like, think again. The film actually manages to break free from most stereotypes around folk horror in the woods by basing its script on one simple truth: people, by nature, are dumb.

Evil vs common sense

In fact, the film taunts you with the fact that their lives are seemingly in their hands at all times. As the story unravels and Elise learns about the trauma that she has been suppressing, they have plenty of chances to get in a car and drive away or call for help on their phones, which magically keep working after days in the woods. Do they? Hell no! It is a lot more fun to just stay in a clearly deadly area for the sake of drama.

Still, the most compelling element is obviously the witch/spirit that lurks around: Larue (Seraphine Harley). Her presence is a complete mystery throughout most of the film. Is she a demon? A witch? A vengeful spirit? Have I watched too much supernatural horror? The answer is yes to all of the above… maybe.

Her presence is constant and yet not enough. Sure, there’s a fair amount of creepy stalking and door closing ominously, leaving people locked in dark corners. But her story is flimsy at best. Literally told in the span of less than a minute and with no detail whatsoever. Of course, her whole lore is not exactly relevant to the story that is taking place, but “witch because witch” does feel a bit too reductive nonetheless.

All in all, Diabolic is a really fun film for horror lovers. It will not provide you with a very profound tale, but it does bring up interesting themes to ponder. Additionally, it does have an incredibly satisfying ending that won’t be mentioned here for the sake of avoiding spoilers.

Diabolic will be available on Blu-ray, DVD and digital from Monday, 25th May.

Advice to take from this movie:

• Never underestimate the damage a homophobic old lady can do.
• If there is an evil spirit stalking you, but instead of running, your BFF wants to stay and commune with her past, let her. Do not wait. Do not search for excuses. Just leave.
• This should be obvious, but don’t follow random strangers into abandoned buildings.

What’s your take? Have you watched Diabolic? Don’t hesitate to let me know your thoughts in the comments section below, or leave a message on my contact page! For more reviews and cinema-related articles, check out the rest of my blog! 😀