Undergoing an unconventional therapy after a recent injury, a woman begins to experience strange occurrences in Madeleine Sims-Fewer and Dusty Mancinelli’s genre-bending thriller.
Given the things that so often happen in such places on screen, viewers are understandably wary when they see characters arriving at an isolated country house like the one in Honey Bunch’s opening scenes. But when it comes to what’s in store for Diana and Homer — played by Grace Glowicki and Ben Petrie — no one can predict the events that await them in Madeleine Sims-Fewer and Dusty Mancinelli’s twisty and twisted second feature.
The reason for the visit is an experimental therapy they hope will heal Diana from injuries sustained in a recent accident, including a brain trauma that’s affected her memory. Though the devoted Homer and the facility’s head of staff (Kate Dickie) are quick to reassure Diana she’s on the road to recovery, other signs leave her increasingly unsettled. After the arrival of India Brown as another patient and Jason Isaacs as her father, more revelations point Diana toward the truth about her situation.
Sims-Fewer and Mancinelli have created a movie that’s not just an impeccably crafted, thoroughly entertaining homage to the science-fiction films and tales of the uncanny of the late ’70s and early ’80s. Amid its many thrills lies a surprisingly poignant story about the lengths we will go and the risks we will take for those we love. It’s also another testament to the daring and versatility of Glowicki and Petrie, who invest the film with the same energy they bring to Glowicki’s directorial effort Dead Lover, also screening at this year’s Festival. But the weirdness they deliver with Honey Bunch’s directors is very much its own thing.
JASON ANDERSON
Content advisory: accident trauma, coarse language, frightening scenes, scenes of surgery, violence, strobing effects
Screenings
Scotiabank 14
TIFF Lightbox 2
Scotiabank 4