An adopted girl returns to her homeland of Russia to explore the dilapidated mountain farm she has recently inherited, only to discover that it harbors a deadly secret in the feature debut from Aftermath director Nacho Cerdà. Shortly after the mysterious death of her birth mother, young Marie was adopted and brought to live in the United States. When Marie receives word that she has inherited an isolated farm in her native Russia, she soon sets out to explore the vast estate and peel away the
thick gauze obscuring her secret-shrouded past. Confounded by the local's refusal to show her to the "damned" locale and determined not to give up after coming this far, Marie convinces a man to take her there only to discover that he has inexplicably vanished shortly after arrival. As Marie sets out to explore the ominous and expansive property alone, a surprise encounter with a man named Boris, who claims to have been lured to the house under similar circumstances, sets into motion a chilling series of events in which the ghosts of the past -- as well as deceased doppelgangers of both Marie and Boris -- prevent the frightened pair from leaving. In the terrifying hours that follow, both of these tormented lost souls will find that sometimes the past is best left forgotten. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
The relatively tame horrors on display here may disappoint fans of the director's gut-spelunking short Aftermath, which made him an underground hero on the abra-cadaver circuit.
All haunted house movies feature labyrinthine corridors and darkened rooms, but few achieve the tangible depth and texture of The Abandoned. After so many inferior generic excursions and aberrations, Cerdà's film feels like a homecoming.
The work of a master visualist trying to walk the line between narrative and visual spectacle. The story is there, but it just sits on the side of the visual experience.
The Abandoned announces that the talent and tenacity Nacho Cerdà showed in his short films easily translates onto the broader, bigger canvas of the full length feature
A sort of haunted house story, "The Abandoned" has scary atmosphere, decent acting, an interesting setting %u2013 everything but a coherent story line.
At its best, it's an effective shocker with an atmosphere that seeps into your very bones. The problem is it's not always at its best, and when it isn't, it really isn't.
I have to admit I was really psyched for this movie after it slipped off my HorrorFest radar. The film started off evenly enough with the delightfully grey green tones of most movies set in Moscow and Karel Roden as always was brilliant, but that's where the movie loses its interest. The rest of the film, past the
first half an hour or so, is overacted and overdone, leaving me feeling exasperated and bored. Its a shame, I really did want it to be better but this was one I definitely endured rather than enjoyed.
August 25, 2011
Unknown Hobo
Super Reviewer
One of the first films in the 8 Films to Die For, After Dark Horrorfest. If you haven't seen the films from the After Dark Horrorfest you are really missing something, this is a awesome collection. This film is from a Russian film company and a Russian Director (Nacho Cerdà) whose spin on horror is indeed intense. A
women from the United States is going back to her roots in Russia where she finds that she is the owner of some land in Russia. When she goes back to the property she also discovers she has a twin brother. So begins a recreation of how her father killed her mother, and she and her brother are stuck in a never ending lope of there past and parents past. Very Creepy, an excellent movie for a stormy windy night, just don't forget to lock the doors. 4 1/2 stars
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