Possession horror typically weaponizes Catholic iconography in the battle against demons. Shouted Latin, brandished crucifixes, splashed holy water and gesticulated black leather-bound books can make for compelling visuals when dispatched against deep-voiced, black-eyed ghouls contorting a human body. Even as religious symbols are used to heighten the terror, the fact that a demon is bound by certain archaic rules provides some measure of comfort. The notion of a demon constrained by rules remains in The Offering, but the setting is less familiar, as the bulk of the film occurs within the walls of a funeral home run by an Orthodox Jewish family.
Though the details may differ from other possession horror films, The Offering uses the aesthetics and traditions of religion to heighten its creepiness, particularly in a scene involving a shapeshifting spirit in the form of a little girl hiding behind a covered mirror as the family sits shiva. As well-worn as many of The Offering’s beats are—ancient evil spirit wants to eat children, evidence gathered on glitchy cassette and VHS tapes, powerful amulets, elaborate sigils inscribed on floors—the tweak in setting and lore provides the film with a bit more verve than your standard demon movie. The same is true for the technical proficiency employed by the filmmakers; this is a film that looks pretty good, even when the CGI demon, which often takes on the appearance of other people, shows its true goatlike form. Unfortunately, the overreliance on jump scares and fake-out dream sequences blunts much the film’s impact with cheap parlor tricks.
Even with ancient evil lurking around the shadows of a morgue, Hank Hoffman’s script offers the most effective storytelling tension through the central family dynamic. As Art (Nick Blood) and his non-Jewish, pregnant wife, Claire (Emily Wiseman), gear up to visit Art’s father Saul (Allan Corduner) at the family home/mortuary, they bicker about how the tradition-minded Saul hasn’t fully accepted her as family because she isn’t Jewish. Once there, Saul is far more hospitable than originally thought, but his assistant, Heimish (Paul Kaye), clashes with Art, chiding him for leaving his father all alone after the death of Art’s mother and derisively referring to Claire as a “shiksa.” But as low-key menacing as Heimish might be, the real threat lies downstairs in a morgue drawer.
It’s not the body of the old man (Anton Trendafilov) but rather what’s trapped inside it that poses such danger to the family. In the opening scene, we see this man pouring a ring of black powder around a complex symbol carved into the floor before some sinister force takes hold of him and he plunges a knife into his chest. Saul leaves it to his prodigal son to prepare the man’s corpse, and after Art uses considerable effort to remove the blade—which bears ancient markings on its handle—from the man’s chest, he also finds a blue amulet worn around the neck. Hell breaks loose when he drops and breaks it after getting spooked by corpse’s eyes opening.
For all its jump scares, creepy phantom children and ancient legends come to life, The Offering utilizes too little of its most interesting source of tension. Art resents that, as his mother lay withering away in the family home many years earlier, Saul offered little meaningful comfort and only suggested he cling to religion. Unfortunately, an intriguing theme of religion used as a crutch when genuine human emotion and grief are too difficult to confront goes unexplored. Similarly, it turns out financial problems and corresponding secrets cause an upset between Claire and Art. Eventually Heimish catches wind and stirs up more familial strife. But this, too, just feels like a plot device to move the story forward rather than true character development. Struggling with a sense of belonging—within a family, culture, religion—is perhaps the film’s most effectively rendered theme, but by its final jump scare, The Offering collapses under a mountain of ghost story clichés and possession horror contrivances.
Photo courtesy of Decal
The post The Offering appeared first on Spectrum Culture.