Varun Patel
Horror movies often employ several repetitive archetypes that function somewhat as genre conventions. One of the conventional archetypes is that of a loving, close-knit family being trapped in an isolated house that is haunted. This often heightens the drama and raises the stakes for every character who has to not only defend their lives but also that of the ones they love. Several movies put a spin on this narrative by depicting one or more of the family members (the kid(s) on a lot of occasions) being possessed and thereby leading to the additional trauma of choosing between self-defense and protection of loved ones.
Another, less common deviation of this archetype was seen in Stanley Kubrick’s ‘The Shining,’ an adaptation of Stephen King’s novel of the same name. In such stories, a character loses their sanity and/or becomes possessed, thereby threatening the lives of their family members.
The upcoming indie horror, ‘The Lodge’ might just fall into this category although that can only be hinted at as confirmed reports of the exact plot will only be available after it has been released. However, what we do know is that the horror movie depicts a family (or group) of people who are uncomfortable and not as loving towards each other like most families. This makes the premise of ‘The Lodge’ more interesting than a run-off-the-mill scary movie.
The Lodge Plot: What is it about?
‘The Lodge’ begins after a father decides to take his two kids and girlfriend, Grace for a family retreat to an isolated winter cabin so that the children can bond with his partner. However, he is forced to leave the kids to be taken care of by Grace due to a work-related emergency. The two siblings do not seem to like Grace too much despite her efforts to connect with them. The relationship between them and Grace is uncomfortable at best. The kids even find her shady.
Soon, a blizzard traps the three of them inside the cabin while mysteriously terrifying events puzzle and scare Grace and the two kids. The children find out about some information about Grace’s dark past which starts to slowly creep up to her.
The Lodge Cast: Who is in it?
The American actress, Riley Keough plays the central character of Grace: a woman who gets trapped in a haunted winter cabin with her boyfriend’s kids while dealing with her traumatic past. A grandchild of the singer, Elvis Presley, Keough made her Hollywood debut with the biographical drama, ‘The Runaways.’ Next, she played the lead on the medical drama, ‘The Good Doctor.’ Keough has appeared in several notable movies like Steven Soderbergh’s ‘Magic Mike’ and ‘Logan Lucky’ apart from ‘Mad Max: Fury Road,’ ‘Dixieland’ and ‘American Honey.’ When asked about the scariest thing during her experience while filming for ‘The Lodge,’ Keough said “the score was really scary. We were there and it was dark while we were filming it, but the score really freaked me out.”
Jaeden Martell, a sixteen-year-old American actor plays the role of Aidan, the eldest child of Grace’s boyfriend. He began acting at the age of eight, starring in a Hot Wheels commercial, followed by several others including one for Google. In 2014, he starred alongside Bill Murray in his first feature-length film, ‘St. Vincent.’ Based on a recommendation by Murray, Martell was casted in the romantic comedy, ‘Aloha’ a year later. He got his first leading role in ‘The Book of Henry.’ However, he became prominently known after appearing in ‘It’ and its sequel. He is also a cast member of the star-studded murder mystery, ‘Knives Out.’
Lia McHugh plays the character of Mia- Aidan’s younger sister. She is an American actress who has started to experience fame recently thanks to her casting as Sprite in the upcoming Marvel movie, ‘The Eternals.’ She has previously appeared in the horror movie, ‘Totem’ and the horror series, ‘Into the Dark.’ Apart from that, Richard Armitage can be seen playing the role of Richard- Aidan and Mia’s father and Grace’s boyfriend.
The Lodge Crew: Who is Behind it?
‘The Lodge’ is an indie horror movie that is being distributed by NEON while FilmNation Entertainment and Hammer Films have produced it. The movie is directed by Veronika Franz and Severin Fiala. Franz and Fiala have also written the movie, along with Sergio Casci. The music score is composed by Danny Bensi and Saunder Juriaans. As mentioned earlier, the movie’s background score has been described as the most spine-chilling thing about the movie by the Riley Keough.
The Lodge Release Date: When Does it Premiere?
‘The Lodge’ will be released theatrically on February 7, 2020. Earlier, the movie was going to be released on November 15, 2019. It was screened at the Sundance Film Festival on January 25, 2019.
The Lodge Trailer:
The official trailer for ‘The Lodge’ does a great job at capturing the slow-burn or steady and tense build-up of the movie. It is a great way to gauge exactly how distinguished ‘The Lodge’ promises to be, as compared to conventional horror movies.
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