SOLSTICE

Megan is plunged into depression since her twin sister Sofie committed suicide. To distract the girl, her friends organize a weekend at Megan's lakeside house on the occasion of St. John's Day, the summer solstice. An ancient legend tells that it is precisely on that day that it is possible to open a passage between the world of the living and that of the dead, and indeed Megan begins to see strange shadows inside the house and in the forest that make her think that her sister is trying to get in touch with her. Released quietly and only for the home video market, "Solstice", the new horror film directed by Daniel Myrick, one of the two authors of "The Blair Witch Project". Myrick, as well as his historical partner Eduardo Sanchez, is a good craftsman, now dedicated to direct-to-video productions of a certain quality; however, unlike the co-author of "The Blair Witch Project", who gave an excellent proof with "Atered – Fear from Deep Space" and whose "Seventh Moon" we are waiting for, the director of "Solstice" seems to have gotten stuck in the aesthetically good but substantially mediocre. "Solstice" is the true standard-bearer of this trend already embarked upon with "Belivers". From the very beginning, one enters the territory of the rural teen movie, with a small group of five young people (who knows why they are always five...) setting off for a nice weekend by the lake that promises sparks. However, it is immediately noticeable that the path Myrick is taking is not that of the usual teen horror full of stereotypical and stupid characters, but this time young people not devoted to transgression at all costs are brought to the scene, among whom only Mark (Matt O'Leary), the "nice guy" of the group, stands out for his stupidity (not excessive). The screenplay therefore prefers to focus on the psychological construction of the protagonist, played by Elisabeth Harnois, a girl tormented by the pain of losing her twin sister. It is commendable to attempt to address the concept of a psychic bond between twins, in this case active even beyond life, but it all seems a bit too artificial and at times gratuitous to make room for the appearances of the ghost and the protagonist's "frigna frigna". The other characters, unfortunately, are too much in the background, perhaps with the exception of Shawn Ashmore, the Ice-man of the "X-men" saga, who plays the ex-boyfriend of the deceased twin and now infatuated with the living one. The story, written by Myrick himself in collaboration with Ethan Erwin and Marty Musatov, takes inspiration from "Midsommer", a 2003 Swedish film of which "Solstice" can be considered a remake. What is linked to the appearances of the ghosts, their attempt to get in touch with the living and the shift towards the thriller at the end is well-known and has been told by horror cinema in all its forms countless times, so this additional ghost story turns out to be rather superfluous in the end. What may seem more interesting, however, is the aura of magic that lies behind the otherworldly contact, here explained with voodoo practices (we are in Louisiana, the land of voodoo par excellence in America) and linked to the day of the summer solstice. Unfortunately, however, apart from some legends told by the villager Nick (Tyler Hoechlin) and the suggestive ritual of communication with the afterlife (the most successful scene of the entire film), no space is given to this aspect and the focus is on the most overused tropes of the genre. "Solstice" dangerously lacks rhythm, indeed for the first 50 minutes (the film lasts a little over an hour and twenty minutes) practically nothing happens, resulting also quite boring... then the predictable increase in pace, but a greater calibration of events and tension would have certainly benefited the film. Technically speaking, "Solstice" is flawless: beautiful and suggestive photography, shifted to warm colors suitable for the setting, beautiful the natural sets characterized by swamps and forests, and good also the few makeup special effects and the sound. All elements that do not differentiate this "Solstice" from any product destined for cinematic distribution. In a minor role appears R. Lee Ermey, legendary Sergeant Hartman of "Full Metal Jacket" back in vogue in recent years for the role of Sheriff Hoyt in the new saga of "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre". In conclusion, "Solstice" is a modest horror story that lacks rhythm and originality; it is watchable, here and there even places the right scene at the right moment, but overall it results in a minor work.