The idea of a disaster happening on the open, yet isolating seas is a terror all it own. From weather to the human element, the possibilities are seemingly endless. And while many have tackled the horrors of the open seas in the past, Gary Shore‘s Haunting of the Queen Mary dives deep into the heart of what makes a Ghost Ship. Yet, it struggles to stay afloat, taking time to find its sea legs before reaching the core of its terrifying story, Transcending time and space, Haunting of the Queen Mary proves by the film’s end that the human spirit never forgets.
A Rocky Ride
The opening of Haunting of Queen Mary is unnerving, its rapid succession of snippets of truth leaving its audiences in an unbalanced state. Viewers are allowed to piece together what is happening on the ship, just barely comprehending the gravity of horror that has taken hold of the Queen Mary. As the camera moves through the decks, the opening credits cutting the narrative like a knife, we come to understand there has been a brutal murder on board, all while images of passengers in life vests run by. There is the feeling of there being more to the story than we are currently being allowed to see, and the acceleration as each new snippet is presented works to drive the intensity.
While the opening sequence works to grab out attention and demand for us to stay to fill in the blanks, the film begins to show its cracks, the sound editing between dialogue and score competing for effect. These issues with the sound balance follow through the entirety of the film. This is further compounded as many times audiences are thrown into an already existing moment, a disconnect forming as they attempt to understand what is happening in the scene and between characters.
Haunting of the Queen Mary works through two paralleling timelines, one set on Halloween in 1938 and the other present day. After the opening sequence, the film jumps back to earlier in the night before the murders took place, audiences working their way toward an inevitable end. Working alongside is our present-day timeline, a mother and son boarding the now-docked ship whose stories of “hauntings” have turned it into a capitalistic venture of tourism.
While a rocky start, the film begins to stabilize in its narrative as the present timeline begins to separate mother, father, and son. While this stabilization with wax and wanes over the next hour, it slowly begins to get under your skin. While the first half initially feels as though it could use tighter editing, as the film works into its second half, it begins to take on a vital and necessary existence. So much so, that I felt myself longing to know more, to spend time with the characters. There is a lot of detail packed into their presence and narrative that at times it feels glanced over in exchange for terrifying intricacies. It was in these moments I felt the film lent itself more to the prospect of a miniseries – one I would each board.
Conclusion:
Now, with all this in mind, Haunting of the Queen Mary delivers gorgeous cinematography from Isaac Bauman. There is a rich lighting, coupled with a well-crafted framework, that at times will take your breath away. The film too is unafraid of the gore, the camera refusing to look away. At times, it is coy with its audience, keeping the violence and blood limited to spatter on a wall, the depth of its violence just on the peripheral. Do not let that fool you, it is wholeheartedly committed to its graphic visual presentation.
While most of the Haunting of the Queen Mary did not work as well as one would hope, its ending is a beauty to behold. Honestly, for the amount of time I have spent thinking back to it, I find myself rethinking the film overall. With the essences of Ghost Ship, American Horror Story and Skeleton Key, these influences not always as apparent, they are always present. As the film has its flaws throughout, there is something that sticks by film’s end, delivering one of the best horror twists of year. There is so much information flooded at the audiences leading up to its big reveal, yet some how it all works perfectly in the final moments and delivers a lasting effect.
While Haunting of the Queen Mary may struggle to find its sea legs, it culminates into an epic voyage of terror and twists.
Haunting of Queen Mary was released in theaters on August 18, 2023!
Watch Haunting of the Queen Mary
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