Written and directed by Axelle Carolyn, Amazon Prime’s The Manor tells the story of Judith Albright, a woman who suffers from a stroke and shifts to a prolific hospital. After a while, she starts believing in the supernatural which seems to be encroaching upon the residents of the nursing home. A helpless Judith wants to escape and attempts to convince people around her, that she doesn’t really need any help from the nursing home for living a regular, ordinary life.
Amazon Prime describes The Manor as,
“After suffering a mild stroke, Judith Albright reluctantly moves into a historic nursing home where she becomes convinced a supernatural force is killing the residents.”
– Amazon Prime’s The Manor review does not contain spoilers –
Known for directing horror films like the Soulmate and Tales of Halloween, Axelle Carolyn is not new to the world of horror. The Manor is blessed with a combination of typical traits of horror movies and psychological thrillers – lingering noises, dark stormy nights with just enough lightning, whispering voices, all of which contribute to the supernatural in the movie. The rationale however is represented by the constant dismissals of Judith’s cohabitants who choose to believe that she has dementia and thus ignore her pleas regarding the occurrence.
The constant conflict between the rational and the supernatural in The Manor is orchestrated very well with just enough balance, accompanied by excellent cinematography resulting in well-equipped scenes as well as transitions. The film runs for a solid eighty-one minutes but manages to keep me hooked, making me worried about poor old Judith and her slowly crumbling mental health.
What I really liked about The Manor is the refreshing casting, especially the casting of Barbara Hershey to play the protagonist, an aged woman trying to escape from this hell hole of a nursing home. Hershey does total justice to the character of Judith Albright. The nuances of old age, transience, the usefulness of the elderly and death act as a perfect base for the building of a horror movie plot and it is perfectly executed by Barbara Hershey. An aged protagonist with the fear of death looming over her adds to the spookiness and the elements of horror in the film.
The Manor is kind of a little silly but entertaining nonetheless. I mean it does make you wonder what would happen in case you lose your marbles after a certain age! I also love all the jump scares in the middle of the night that psychological thrillers are usually famous for – freaky but entertaining. As the film runs towards the finish line, as a viewer I could not help wondering is Judith really being honest or her mind is playing tricks on her because that would be so early 2000s. Is it all in her head or is it really happening?
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Summing Up: The Manor
Overall, The Manor is a psychological thriller film with an added hint of mystery. It is compact and considerate even though the running time is eighty-one minutes the plot is not compromised on. The thrill is held onto until the end and the time span works in its favour. The Manor is a movie well equipped for the month of Halloween!
The Manor is now streaming on Amazon Prime Video.
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