Body At Brighton Rock

I had a colonoscopy once that I enjoyed more than this film

Body at Brighton Rock (2019) is the first full-length feature film directed (and written) by Roxanne Benjamin, and it demonstrates that she is indeed a horror director to watch. Benjamin has also written and directed the “Don’t Fall” segment of the excellent all-female horror anthology XX (2017) and the “Siren” segment of Southbound (2015). Body at Brighton Rock features park ranger Wendy (Karina Fontes), who is not exactly cut out for the rugged task she undertakes when she agrees to switch shifts with her friend Maya (Emily Althaus) and head out on a trail to tack up warning signs. Untrained, and not taking the perils she’s warning tourists about seriously herself, Wendy finally gets lost after inadvertently leaving her map behind. Looking over the ridge shes on, Wendy sees what seems to be a dead body below her. After confirming the man is indeed dead, Maya radios to the park headquarters and dispatch tells her she has to stay where she is and protect the possible crime scene until they can send a group out to her. Since it’s already late in the afternoon, Wendy has to stay the night with the dead body. Already terrified by the desolate location and the body, Wendy is further unsettled by the appearance of a strange man who says he’s been out there for days, presumably hunting or hiking, but who doesn’t seem to have any equipment or the phone he says he usually carries. Something seems off about this man, but it’s unclear if, as viewers, we’re infected by Wendy’s increasingly unstable point of view. Panicking, Wendy tells the man to get away from her and the body, thus losing contact with a potentially helpful stranger. Now she does have to spend the night alone. I very much recommend Body at Brighton Rock. It’s a slow film that keeps you interested because of Wendy’s hapless character, played expertly by Karina Fontes, because of the dread that inexorably builds, and because of the breathtaking landscape. Benjamin offers shot after shot of Wendy utterly dwarfed by the land, heightening our sense of her terror. The film really pays off in the last fifteen minutes or so, which I absolutely loved. It’s a satisfying ending that the film has earned, as it pulls together lots of strands and clues that the viewer probably didn’t put together in the first viewing. It also delivers two truly shocking scenes and then a slow-dawning realization of something that terrifies in a quite different way. I have a full review of Body at Brighton Rock at my website HorrorHomeroom.com.

He was eating the ham, and then there was the bone in the center. Where did the bone go? It was large enough to be used as a weapon. Which I dont understand why was not done so. She could have survived if only he had saved the hambone. But instead, it conveniently disappeared and now were left with a major plot hole. Other than that, I felt like this movie was okay.

As described.

Only 2 stars cause it was based in the 80s. The actors must have done this for free to get exposure.

Surprise ending which I liked.

I see a lot of reviews calling this movie boring, I watched it on another streaming device. It’s not boring, but it will be if you go in expecting some action movie. This movie is well filmed, and thankfully while dopey and unaware of her job the lead may be, her actress is anything but. Truly. The reason I’m writing this review is because she carried this movie so well, even the bits that were totally outlandish, but that gets cleared up later. I watched this movie via Hulu. Had I bought it I would have been let down, however, now that I watched it I’m kinda wanting to add it to my collection. It’s not my usual film, it was in the horror/ thriller section, I expected more horror. However, once I got into the movie I was just sitting there for the suspense. There are a few downfalls, but again it’s an indie movie and sometimes Dialing down your ideas is hard. A few more edits and this would have been a completely solid film. I think this movie is rental worthy if you are looking for a good film to creep you out before a hike.

Rented movie. Its dumb. You cant have the main character, or any character, making incredibly stupid mistakes that, while within the realm of possibility, tend to be completely ridiculous in context. There are so many other things wrong.

Entertaining.

Where to start? Poor plot, horrible acting, the lead actress is unlikable, and this movie is all over the place. Common sense went out the window when writing this. Very boring and then 3/4 of the way they go for weird and its all downhill from there. Unrealistic. Girl can barely manage to breathe and walk at the same time and then suddenly at the end with a bear, they have her a survival expert that can think on her feet.