Director: Dave Boyle
Screenplay: Dave Boyle
Cast: Moeka Hoshi, Kurumi Inagaki, Kento Kaku, Tae Kimura, Mutsuo Yoshioka
Cinematography: Patrick Ouziel
Music: Jonathan Snipes
Running Time: 105 minutes
Never After Dark is an occasionally effective supernatural horror film that delivers some genuinely unsettling moments, strong performances and an engaging final act. Unfortunately, inconsistent pacing and an unnecessarily convoluted story prevent it from being as satisfying as it could have been.
Directed by Dave Boyle, the film follows Airi (Moeka Hoshi), a travelling medium who helps troubled spirits move on from the world of the living. When she is called to investigate a haunting at an isolated country house, she encounters a particularly disturbing presence that proves far more difficult to deal with than she anticipated.
There are familiar elements here that reminded me of films such as The Sixth Sense, Insidious and, to a lesser extent, The Black Phone. The communication between the living and the dead, the exploration of the spirit world and some of the darker developments within the mystery all bring those films to mind. However, Never After Dark does introduce some interesting ideas of its own.
For me, the most intriguing aspect of the film was Airi herself, particularly her relationship with Miku (Kurumi Inagaki), her deceased older sister, whom she continues to see and communicate with. I found myself increasingly curious about why Miku remained present in Airi’s life and how their relationship would eventually connect with the main story. In fact, I was often more interested in this personal aspect of the narrative than the central haunting.
The performances are another strength. Hoshi makes Airi an engaging character to follow, while the supporting cast also delivers convincing work. Even when my interest in the main mystery began to fade, the performances helped maintain my investment in what was happening.
Unfortunately, the pacing becomes a problem surprisingly early. Around the half-hour mark, I found the film beginning to drag. There are moments when the tension picks up, only for the momentum to slow down again. This stop-start approach continues for much of the running time, making the experience less engaging than it should have been.
It doesn’t help that the central mystery becomes unnecessarily convoluted. There is an intriguing idea at its heart, particularly in the way the film connects the supernatural with something altogether more human. However, I wasn’t always convinced that the story needed to be quite so complicated. A more straightforward approach might have allowed the stronger elements to make a greater impression.
When it comes to the horror itself, Boyle does get several things right. There are some effective jump scares, along with disturbing images of the spirits that occasionally make for uncomfortable viewing. However, I also felt that some of these apparitions looked surprisingly ordinary. Considering how threatening they were supposed to be, their rather human appearance sometimes reduced their effectiveness.
The setting also has its moments. I wouldn’t say that the house itself is particularly frightening, but it becomes considerably more unsettling whenever the spirits appear. The lighting helps, with certain colours used effectively to suggest danger and heighten the atmosphere. These visual choices contribute to some of the film’s more successful sequences.
The gore effects are another highlight. They look convincing and have a physical quality that I appreciated. Rather than appearing like artificial computer-generated imagery, the violence has a realism that makes some of the more gruesome moments particularly effective.
Jonathan Snipes’ musical score generally complements the film, although there were occasions when it seemed strangely at odds with what was happening on screen. These moments were distracting, particularly in a film that relies so heavily on atmosphere.
Thankfully, Never After Dark improves considerably during its final half-hour. The pace increases, the story becomes much more engaging and the horror develops a greater sense of urgency. This was easily the strongest section of the film for me, and I found myself far more invested in the outcome than I had been during some of the slower passages.
There is also a moment during an attack when a character’s scream struck me as unintentionally funny. I’m not entirely sure whether humour was intended, but it briefly took me out of what appeared to be a serious moment.
Nevertheless, I found the ending emotionally satisfying. Despite my reservations about the storytelling, the conclusion brings the different elements together well and provides a worthwhile payoff to Airi’s journey.
Ultimately, there is plenty about Never After Dark that I like. The performances are strong, the practical-looking gore is convincing, and there are several moments of genuinely effective horror. I also appreciated the emotional dimension of Airi’s story, which gave me something to care about beyond the supernatural mystery.
Unfortunately, the uneven pacing and unnecessarily complicated narrative prevent the film from fully realising its potential. It’s a worthwhile horror film with some interesting ideas, but one that I felt could have been considerably stronger with tighter storytelling.
Never After Dark is released on digital platforms on 2nd November, by Blue Finch Film Releasing.