Well this was a strange one. The story begins with Tricia (Courtney Bell) wandering around town posting flyers regarding her husband who has been missing for seven years. When she returns home she finds that her sister, Callie (Katie Parker) has returned from her travels to stay with Tricia. Callie has issues of her own which soon becomes apparent, haven’t been dealt with. Tricia is still having a hard time regarding her missing husband Daniel (Morgan Peter Brown). She is pregnant by another man and is trying to move on with her life. The only real thing she has left to do regarding her missing husband is to declare him death in absentia. Which is when the trouble starts.

Tricia begins to have terrifying visions of Daniel. Her psychiatrist believes them to be linked to the fact that she is declaring him death in absentia, and also to the fact she is moving on with her life. Callie also begins to see strange things, all linked to a mysterious tunnel opposite Tricia’s house. I don’t really want to say any more as it would spoil the story.

The acting is good for a movie that has been made on a tight budget, the effects are reasonable enough and there is a poignant cameo from the always brilliant Doug Jones. I didn’t like the film myself. That has no bearing on the actors who all do an admirable job. I think my feelings stem from the impression laid upon me due to the piss poor marketing. The cover, of which I haven’t used at the bottom of this page, gives a misleading view of this movie. It gives the impression that this is a film chock full of gore and scares. It isn’t. It has the odd jump scare which is effective, but as another reviewer buddy of mine Andy Catsu mentions (http://thegoresplatteredcorner.com/2014/07/05/dr-catsu-reviews-absentia-2011-uk-blu-ray/), it deals with other serious issues. I didn’t get that impression from the movie myself. Not because they weren’t present, but because the marketing just didn’t even give a hint that this was that type of movie, so I just wasn’t giving it my full attention. That’s down to me, and I’m sure my view will change on repeated viewings.

I was also very careful about what images I attached to this review. Firstly so I don’t make the same fuck up that the marketing folks did and give you a different impression of this movie, but also so I didn’t really give too much away. Like I said the acting is good and the storyline is interesting enough. Should my views change I will come back and update this review. Enjoy.

3/5

JM