Gwen (2018)

Gwen is a slow burn tale of destitute set in an isolated hill village in Wales during the 19th century industrial revolution. Gwen is the name of the young girl struggling to survive in the cruel environment she is brought up in. A father that has gone MIA in the war, a mother is doesn't seem quite right in the mind, and a hostile village folks eyeing to chase her family away so that they can develop her land, all contributes to her predicament. Add to the mix are strange sounds in the night, and mysterious illness that kills off the farm animals. So what we have here is the perfect setting for something unsettling to scare the viewers since it is being publicised as something in the horror vein.

Some critics have hailed this as "atmospheric arthouse" fare, but I felt it was a waste of time because nothing much happens throughout the film's thankfully short running time of below 90 minutes. The setting, and acting may be good, but without a good story, Gwen just ends up being a futile effort. Much of the strange events were never really explained and there was in fact nothing macabre about it either even though promotional material imply a sort of "Witch" storyline. What erred me most about Gwen however what its ending. While I patiently accepted the slow pacing, moodiness, and even appreciated the avoidance of any cheap scare tactics, I was anticipating an ending that would have made it all worthwhile. What happened to the main characters at the end was unexpected and did not provide a good closure or meaningful purpose to the whole story. It simply left me unsatisfied and the feeling that I have just wasted 90 minutes of my life watching this! My advice ... this is definitely something I would strongly NOT recommend.