Samhain: mother-daughter relationships addressed in a creepy horror film

The director Kate Dolan places the plot of his horror film in his home country: Ireland. An island full of myths and legends, including Samhain, the festival of the dead, which would be at the origin of the Halloween party we know today.

According to beliefs, around October 31, the border that separates our world from that of the afterlife opens. Thus, the living can venture into the realm of the dead while the dead roam the lands they trod before they died.

What does Samhain say?

Charlottethe protagonist of the film, lives among his depressed mother Angela and her exhausted grandmother Rita. One day, her mother disappears to reappear 24 hours later, a few days before Samhain, as if nothing had happened.

The further the plot progresses, the more questions arise around Charlotte’s mother: Is the woman who returned really the same one who disappeared?

The inverse mother-daughter relationship

The plot of the film is built around depressed mothertotally neurasthenic, ea tortured girlbullied by his classmates. Angela under medication, she is his daughter Charlotte who more or less has to take care of her.

The teenager suffered the results of this situation that conditions his whole life. in addition to mental load which a young girl should never bear, the reputation of her family and mother do her bullying at school.

The film then presents the daily life of this young girl who had to grow and mature at her expense, preventing her from living the normal life a teenager should live.

The movie totally deals with this hearth in an interesting way brokenwhere are the links fractured and relationships complicated. Unlike the families we can see on screen on a regular basis, especially in horror and horror movies, this one is flood, transparent and true. It’s neither glamorous nor romanticized. She exposes us its defects and violationsthat make our mouths water at the idea of ​​continuing the film.

The importance of mental health for human relationships

Topics like depression and mental health are constantly addressed in the film, which ultimately makes no sense in a horror film. the the background matches the shapegiving a social and social dimension to the first film by Kate Dolan.

The Mental health of the mother is described to us from the beginning of the film. Before and after her disappearance, and despite the attitude changes of the character throughout the film, his health problems have a significant impact on relation which she and her daughter maintain. One could even say that all their interactions are punctuated by depression of one or of the intense sadness And misunderstanding the other.

Without spoilersthe representation of Mental health of the mother evolves throughout the film and remains consistent with the relationship he has with his daughter Charlotte. No need to say more, you’ll know what we’re talking about when you watch Samhain.

The film will be released in theaters on December 7.

Distributed by the company Star Invest Film France, Samhain will be able to find a place for itself in your cinemas during this end of the year. Kate Dolan, whose overflowing imagination is at the origin of this feature film, presents a debut feature powerful, terrifying, bearer of necessary messages. This director, who is committed to having as many women as possible in her films, is an artist to watch.

Being a woman in the film industry isn’t easy. But according to the words of the director, the world of horror cinema is a lot less affected by sexismallowing artists to thrive, it doesn’t matter their kind. So we’ll see it to evolve in this world of horror with only haste the release of a future project.

Photo credits: Bakutroo and Priscilla Du Preez – Unsplash