In 1920s Ireland, twins Rachel and Edward lead solitary lives in a mansion on the decline, kept there by some sinister presence. Filmed in the supposedly haunted Loftus Hall, The Lodgers is an intimate gothic tale reminiscent of Poe’s The Fall of the House of Usher. Brian O’Malley (Let Us Prey) does a splendid job bringing David Turpin’s script to life. With a limited number of sets and similarly sized cast, the story is compact in its telling, with fine pacing and a sense of purpose to everything that comes on screen. Bill Milner is truly creepy in his role as the agoraphobic Edward, and Charlotte Vega’s Rachel is portrayed with similar deftness. It’s a contemplative style of horror, but it comes together for great effect as Rachel and Edward explore the outer edges of their bound existence.
