Warning: This review contains pictures that aren’t suitable for all audiences.

Well, heck: I’ve fallen down the proverbial rabbit hole of international horror again. This is an exercise that can take a little more warming up than usual. Oftentimes the traditions of filming, direction, or acting that one gets used to no longer apply when you change location.

In some ways, Cadaver, writer-director Jarand Herdal‘s first feature-length film, is no exception. So too may it take a moment to adjust to the clear stylistic influence of his prior career in crafting music videos. However, after the initial question mark, the heady, slightly drunkish-feeling edge to the film marries well to the story.

The film kicks off with a family consisting of Leonora, Jakob, and their six-year-old daughter Alice living in dire straits in the wake of a nuclear disaster that took hold of an alternate Norway. Indeed, the film opens on some oppressively bleak sequences. The cold blue tones and dim (even dark) sequences took some getting used to. However, once I got settled in, their purpose and contribution became quickly clear.

This choice provides a solid sense of atmosphere very quickly, situating the central characters’ lives as well as the backdrop of their community. It also offers up an effectively stark contrast to the luxuriously sinister environs that arrive later in the film.

That said, on the topic of bleakness: the film does open on a double suicide that is just graphic enough to merit the heads up. In fact, that warning is something I wish I’d had going in. It’s also worth noting at this point, that the film isn’t shy of gore and violence. This may be a film to skip for readers that don’t care for that kind of content in their horror.

Circling back, as usual with international films I’d recommend watching it in the original language with English subtitles to get a full sense of the characters’ lives, personalities, motivations, and so on. This is especially worthwhile as the bleak, stifling scenery that muffles everything as we initially get to know our core cast puts the onus on the actors to convince us to invest.

Let me tell you: I’m convinced. They’ve got me. Gitte Witt as Leonora is particularly impressive, moving persuasively between earnest hopefulness, anguished desperation, and conflicted wariness. She does so with striking control over not just her voice and body language, but over individual facial muscles.

Once the simmering mistrust gives way to true fear, the initial turnabouts — disappearing characters, ominously shadowy hallways, and paintings with moving eyes — may not be terribly surprising. Still, the solid grasp of atmosphere and pacing keeps the sense of dread feeling fresh and crisp. The sense of dread is accompanied by dizzying set layouts and an immersive soundtrack that serve Cadaver very well.

Altogether, this leads the characters and audience alike to doubt the threads of maybe-maybe-not-reality the film weaves together to competent effect. Indeed, later revelations as the film progress also turn even those familiar genre aspects on their head in satisfying ways. Along the way, it brings some new ideas to recognizable concepts that work well in Cadaver‘s favor.

In sum, Cadaver may not be the most novel concept on the playground. The film’s ending pushing past its natural conclusion creates a slightly disheartening disjoint. Even so, it’s alluringly well-executed for what it is, with a strong team of writer-director, actors, and technicians. It certainly isn’t deserving of some of the sharply negative reviews it’s received.

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Cadaver

0.00

8.8

Score

8.8/10

Pros

• Gorgeous set designs
• Great acting
• Immersive soundtrack
• Intriguing atmosphere

Cons

• Ending feels a little underwhelming