PLOT: John Hawkins, counting down his last days as Chief of Police in the tiny town of Lone Crow. But when a mangled body with uncanny wounds washes up, he’s pulled into a horrific mystery that defies comprehension.
REVIEW: The Breach has the odd distinction of being based on an Audible Original Podcast, further proving that movie ideas can come from all sorts of places. Its Author, Nick Cutter, is one of the most prominent authors in horror today, with his novel The Troop really taking the literary world by storm. There weren’t many lists of best horror books of the last few decades, without his work featured. So it’s always shocking to me that his work has yet to be successfully adapted.
After a family comes across a horribly (and I mean HORRIBLY) mutilated body, Officer John Hawkins is on the hunt for the culprit. This will be the last case before he hangs it up as the Police Chief. Teaming with Hawkins are his girlfriend, Meg, who he’s leaving behind. Her ex-husband, Jacob, who also happens to be in law enforcement – because of course he is, also happens to come along – because of course, he does. You can see where all the wacky Hijinx and shenanigans come from.
Outside of the lead, who is actually pretty believable, the acting can be a little “Lifetime Channel” quality. While I got a kick out of some of the dialogue, the actors didn’t pull most of it off convincingly. The interactions between the two that were supposed to be a former couple are about as rough as it gets. There are very few times where a side characters line delivery comes across as convincing here, which really hurts the film.
The Breach is a pretty slow-moving story, with our characters finding things out at a snail’s pace. Having never listened to the original story, I’m not sure whether to credit Cutter, or the screenwriter Ian Weir for the very strange, expository dialogue. But I will say that it’s very distracting. And so much of the exposition seems to happen for things that really don’t need explanation, like the relationship dynamics or basic detective work.
If you’re going into this expecting creatures on the level of 2016’s The Void, then prepare to be disappointed. The creature effects in this movie almost feel like they could have been in a Power Rangers show. They are very rubber and look very stiff. There’s nothing really inspired about them. Thankfully, they aren’t featured a ton so it’s not like you’re forced to look at them a lot. What that means, however, is that you’re watching what’s supposedly a Lovecraftian horror film that features significantly less than impressive creature(s).
But the reason this movie will be reaching plenty of eyeballs will be due to its executive producer: Slash. Yes, THAT Slash. Not only did he produce the film, but he also provided the score. And if you’re worried that Slash providing the music means it’ll just be guitar solos then fret not. This score is all sorts of kickass. Slash uses his expert musical knowledge to provide such a texture to the proceedings. This isn’t just a guitarist who’s riffing over some cool visuals, this is an organic melding together into one entity. If anything, I’d compare it to Wendy Carlos and Rachel Elkind’s score for The Shining. Which is massively high praise.
There are some neat camera tricks but there’s hardly enough cosmic horror to even fall under the category of Lovecraftian. If anything, the film ends up devolving more into a zombie film or ghost story by the end. The story of The Breach is a bit of a dud, as it never really lives up to its promising introduction. With some poor performances and questionable effects, you have to like a certain kind of film to be on board for this one. And given how little happens in the overall story, I feel like I was sold a false bill of goods. But with a score from Slash, there’s still some fun to be had because it is easily the highlight here.
The Breach is currently screening at Fantasia Film Fest!