“You Called It Forth, Now It Won’t Leave You Alone”
From the long opening shot in Luz, we know that the feel and tone of this movie will be different from our average possession horror. It is the directorial debut from Tillman Singer who takes inspiration from the horror greats such as Dario Argento, David Cronenberg, and Lucio Fulci. If you are familiar with these directors (I mean, who isn’t, right?) then you’ll get an idea on what to expect from Luz.
The film starts off with our main character Luz (Luana Velis) walking into a police station. Well, she ain’t walking, she’s just shuffling. She slowly and awkwardly makes her way to the vending machine. She then turns to the cop who is working behind the desk: “Is this how you want to live your life?”, she asks him. Before we get time to figure out what Luz means, the story shifts. We then meet Dr Rossini (Jan Bluthardt) and Nora (Julia Riedler). Nora introduces herself to the psychiatric doctor and she begins to tell her story about Luz. The doctor listens, not realising that he is now part of the story that she is telling.
If you appreciate arthouse independent cinema then I think there’s a lot to love about Luz.
It is a film that still manages to hit a nerve without the usual and too often repetitive demonic antics. It is driven by an oddly upbeat and piercingly original synth soundtrack adding to the arthouse feel of the movie.
I don’t think Luz would be for everyone. For the most part of the movie, it’s like a stage play. With that said, the acting was solid and believable. I wasn’t surprised to learn that the main characters in Luz were all involved with theatre work. This is clearly evident in their performances.
Apart from a little bit of blood, Luz is pretty much gore-free. Although I am a big fan of all things gruesome, it was another element of the film I really enjoyed.
It was still very much horror movie only it relied solely on the direction, script, OST, and impressive strong performances from the cast. Not only was Luz the directorial debut from director/writer Tillman Singer, but it was also his final project for his diploma at the Kunsthochschule für Medien Köln/Academy of Media Arts Cologne. I am looking forward to seeing what Singer can deliver with a bit of budget behind him.
As always thanks for reading.
Words by Gary Gamble
Founder/Owner/BigCheese @ Moviehooker
