Directed by Colin Tilley and written by Elisa Victoria and Michael Tully, grieving the death of her parents, Anna moves from New York to Florida to stay with her grandmother. She falls in with some other teens, but when she sees a grisly act of violence, she finds herself trapped. Starring: Whitney Peak, Finn Bennett, Laken Giles, S. Epatha Merkerson and Golda Rosheuvel.
Moving to a new place, especially a small community, to live with a relative they’ve never met, at a vulnerable point in their life, and being quickly faced with the unusual locals, is a staple of horror cinema and Eye for an Eye uses it well. The tones of suspicion and secrets linger heavily in the air, and they’re extremely fitting for that swampy Florida setting. There are endless nefarious uses for those types of locations, it’s a perfect choice for a little bit of violence, rage, revenge and sadism. There’s something to it that reminds of the lesser-appreciated 2013 film Beautiful Creatures, its teen-centric story and bullying themes, as well as how Colin Tilley’s style of horror leans into the supernatural.
The writing is solid and is undoubtedly supported by the leading performance from Whitney Peak. She creates a relatable, kind and individual personality in Anna, there’s a softness to her but she’s also not one to backdown, it’s a great balance for this type of film. She’s extremely well supported by an almost unrecognisable Golda Rosheuvel, who greatly taps into that feeling of childhood trauma and brokenness, bringing a very wary yet resilient quality. S. Epatha Merkerson then fully embraces the suspicion and tension, she adds an unknown quantity which really boosts Eye for an Eye’s atmosphere.
If you’re most familiar with Finn Bennett for his exceptional performance in the last season of True Detective alongside Jodie Foster and Kali Reis, this will be a sharp contrast. He’s heavily hitting those notes of classic controlling, coercive and aggressive behaviour. Bennett definitely gets a lot of credit for how intensely dislikable he makes Shawn. It’s a relatively small but very strong ensemble who do a terrific job of creating plenty of tension, threat and anticipation.
However, Eye for an Eye is primarily being let down by its visual, the cinematography is frustrating. It’s so faint in moments, there’s no sharpness or texture, there’s no edge to its colours and the setting really could have provided that in the right hands. It’s entirely mismatched with the atmosphere that Tilley builds which is consistently solid throughout the film. The same goes for the editing work, it’s not embracing the dark side, instead it makes the film feel like a commercial, it’s undermining the tone that Tilley is trying to set.
Eye for an Eye has a great concept and takes some imaginative swings which create some great tension and build almost a dark fairy tale feel. It has that traditional, local legend foundation which is a beloved horror choice and works really well here. The performances are all really enjoyable and Whitney Peak does a superb job taking the lead and creating a character who’s vulnerable enough to get into trouble but strong and smart enough to fight back. However, it’s visually lacking, the aesthetic can’t take the film where it wants to go.
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