PLOT: When talented young violinist Rose Fisher (Freya Tingley) learns that her estranged father Richard Marlowe (Rutger Hauer) has passed away, she’s left the keys to his sprawling 19th-century estate. As Rose investigates her father’s cryptic past, she becomes tormented by an inexplicable force of evil.
REVIEW: With two short films under his belt – one a standalone effort (ENTITY), the other an anthological leg (GALAXY OF HORRORS) – writer/director Andrew Desmond has opted to expand his filmmaking range with THE SONATA, a lavishly lensed and sumptuously set haunted-manse slash demonic-incursion crosshatch that, through a moodily conjured sense of anticipatory dread and decently preserved mystery, not to mention a fetching fresh face in Tingley, does all it can to remain ensorcelling for as long as it possibly can. That is, until the inevitable trappings and face-falling tripwires of two first-time-feature scribes (Desmond and Arthur Morin) rear their ugly heads in the final act, rendering the honest intrigue of first hour largely inconsequential. With the literal and figurative specter of the great Rutger Hauer looming over nearly every frame, THE SONATA isn’t the quite swan song we’d expect or hope for regarding his legacy, but at the same time, isn’t as poorly pitched a tune as one might associate with a first feature. As a soloist, THE SONATA proves Desmond is no virtuoso, but at least he can hold a pitch!
Rose Fisher (Tingley) is a budding young violinist and protégée to her renowned but estranged father, Richard Marlowe (Hauer). The movie begins with Rose learning the news that her father has suddenly died, and has left her permission to access his gorgeous European mansion and all of his belongings. We learn that Marlowe committed suicide via self-immolation in front of the mansion, a detail that is kept hidden from Rose. What instantly strikes about the film is the unforgiving winter conditions, but also the stunning manse in which much of the action takes place. Much of the film was shot in on location in Latvia, with the real-life Cesvaine Palace (built in the 19th century) offering historical regality unafforded by most artificial sets. The authentic setting instantly puts us in a time and place, one that feels sweepingly large and beautifully furnished, but also cold, quiet, isolated and ominous.
When Rose arrives, she finds a final Sonata written and left behind by her father. More cryptic yet is how Marlowe embedded several symbols and curious clues in the sheet-music, which Rose works to slowly decipher. Caretaker Charles Vernais (Simon Abkarian) oversees the process, eventually informing Rose that the symbols signify the four faces of evil, and that Marlowe was trying to communicate with Rose in a way that could save her life, and his musical legacy as well. The longer she stays at the mansion, Rose is beset with increasingly haunting imagery on the edges of her periphery, be they demonic entities, fiery visages of her dead father, ghostly shadows, etc. When Rose plays the Sonata on the piano, an inimical scourge is unleashed, forcing her and Simon to rearrange the notes in order to reverse the curse the rid the malefic energy from the house once and for all. How it all transpires from here is just about worthy enough for you to discover on your own, even if the landing is awkwardly unstuck. I will say those expecting a posthumous performance from Hauer to write home about, you'll be smart sorely when learning he's barely used in the film for anything other than a portentous totem, as his self-portrait hangs like a spirit over the whole endeavor.
While the shortage of scares in THE SONATA is reduced to staid visual jump-scares and a few lame aural sound-stings, the overriding mood, macabre atmosphere, and upscale classical music almost compensate for such. There’s an elevated artfulness to the production design and garish period-lighting by DP Janis Eglitis (FIRSTBORN) that goes a long way in drawing us in, dazzling us with gorgeous sights and sounds, only to flip those pleasant sensations on their ear as the film continues to bombard with increasingly ghoulish imagery. Alas, none of the imagery as all that terrifying in any one instance, and the accumulative effect even leaves us more in a state of possessed hypnosis than in a state of outright fright. By this measure, the number one criterion for a horror movie, THE SONATA lacks the requisite chills needed to achieve greatness. However, it does several other things admirably well enough to almost forgive the dearth of terror.
One of these facets includes the central turn from Freya Tingley as Rose, a young actress who at once exudes the soft beauty and sympathetic vulnerability needed to make us truly care for her wellbeing from the first few frames of the film. She also reveals, as the film unspools, the surprising strength and commanding presence to not only protect herself but to also retain the sympathetic countenance as she summons the gut-wrenching gallantry to confront her father’s overbearing legacy. With a lesser main performance, the movie would suffer greatly, as any movie might, but Tingley is most definitely a fresh face to keep tabs on in the future. So too is Desmond, who has delivered a promising debut feature that excels in establishing a moody ambiance, upscale environment, classically composed music, and the underlying malevolence that threatens to corrupt each attribute. In the end, THE SONATA is no magnum opus, but it’s a pretty catchy opening tune for a promising new tyro.