Hounds of Love (2017)

Review

108min

Genre:     Crime, Drama, Horror

Director:  Ben Young

Cast:       Emma Booth, Ashleigh Cummings, Stephen Curry…and more

Writer:    Ben Young

-Synopsis-

After being abducted on the quiet streets of Australian suburbia by a perverted couple, a young girl is subjected to horrendous exploitation and sexual abuse, but begins to exploit a relationship rift between her captors as her only means of escape in this intense feature debut from Aussie writer/director Ben Young . . . disturbingly inspired by true events.

Having begun a fledgling directorial career with shorts and Aussie television, Young returns to his roots and the dark side of Western Australia which bubbles under the surface of sun-baked suburbia, crafting a disturbing and sinister story of broken families and abuse, centred around horrific fictional events made all the more disquieting by the echoes it has of the inconceivably dark stories we’ve all heard in the news over the years.

Comedic actor and Aussie TV favourite Stephen Curry and rising Antipodean film star Emma Booth undergo a stark transformation to star as ‘John’ and ‘Evelyn White’, a perverse suburban Aussie ‘Bonnie & Clyde’ duo of sexual predators, stalking the quiet streets of provincial Perth for teenage girls ripe for their depraved and murderous proclivities. When local teen ‘Vicki’ (Ashleigh Cummings) sneaks out for a night of partying, she becomes the White’s latest plaything and subjected to all manner of abuse—only to rely on her wits and a complicated strained relationship between her captors for a glimmer of hope for survival, while her distraught family searches for her.

Although not specifically based on any real people, ‘Hounds of Love’ is eerily inspired by the evil deeds of serial rapists and murderers David and Catherine Birnie in Peth during the mid 80s, also known as the ‘Moorhouse murders’—even more creepy are the parallels this story has with other accounts of kidnapping and serial abuse of girls all over the Western world over the last few decades, particularly in the US and in Europe.

Make no bones about it ‘Hounds of Love’ is a disturbing and sexually perverse psychological thriller that’s often hard to watch and just about crosses the line into horror—yet this taut little indie is just as effective as a thematically simple but humanistically complex character drama, presenting John as a manipulative but broken sexual sadist with Evelyn as both his accomplice and facilitator, while in some ways a victim herself. In fact she is really the moral heart of this troubling piece, kept at her husband’s side by both true love but also fear—a fear not only of him but of a life without him and the consequences of their crimes, which keep her away from the troubling life and family she left behind for ‘love’.

Beyond being a harrowing indie picture, ‘Hounds of Love’ is also a stylish one, with the look of the period being expertly recreated while Young makes effective use of tracking shots and slow-motion which dwell to foreboding effect, often in sinister moments. Yet despite the disturbing subject matter and some truly unsettling scenes, this isn’t a particularly graphic film—neither in terms of sex or violence—instead proving less overt and more subtle and implied when it comes to both, making it even more effective.

The tone and indeed the dark heart of the film is ultimately driven by the outstanding electronic score from relatively novice composer Dan Luscombe, a melodic and atmospheric collection of synth sounds which colours the narrative and sets a sinister mood, often with ominous tones.

‘Hounds of Love’ doesn’t have quite enough to make it a modern indie masterpiece though, featuring a pretty familiar basic premise seen across genres over the years and, plus a slightly predictable narrative with a key character arc that you can clearly see coming—but it’s made dynamic and fresh by the gritty realism of the piece and the confrontingly raw and honest performances with deep personal layers.

Young Cummings delivers a harrowing performance as the not entirely helpless but broken victim, complete with skin-crawling screams, while Curry shines as the despicable villain of the piece and adds a dimension to his career no one has seen before—but the gravitas and emotional layers are truly provided by Emma Booth’s performance as a complex and confronting character, making you uncomfortably empathise with a character that’s done enough to merit pure disgust.

The Bottom Line…

Confronting, honest and incredibly unsettling, this disturbing story of mothers and daughters, broken families and abuse works both as a horror/thriller and a disquieting character drama, while lifting the veil on what can happen behind the closed curtains of quiet suburbia. ‘Hounds of Love’ may have too many limitations to be an instant indie classic, but Ben Young’s debut is impressively well-crafted and no doubt memorable . . . although you may feel like you need a shower after watching it.

Similar films you may like (Home Video)

Split (2017)

When three teenage girls are kidnapped and held captive by a troubled man with 23 distinct personalities, they must find a way to escape before his most fearsome incarnation is born in this horror/thriller from the writer/director of ‘The Sixth Sense’ and ‘Unbreakable’.

Directed by M. Night Shyamalan and starring James McAvoy, Anya Taylor-Joy and Haley Lu Richardson among others.

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