Relic
“Relic” feels like it’s going down a familiar path for a good portion of its running time, before the true nature of what is happening at Edna’s house is revealed, and the film has one more big twist after that. When it’s treading seemingly familiar ground, the film feels somewhat aimless; once it swings for the fences, Natalie Erika James’s film is unforgettable.
At it’s core, the script by James and Christian White has a profound thematic, and emotional, idea at its center, and it is the moment when children feel responsible for their parents. The film begins with Edna (Robyn Nevin) missing from her home- she is in her 80s, and her daughter, Kay (Emily Mortimer), has noticed memory issues setting in. Kay and her daughter, Sam (Bella Heathcote), drive to her house to check on Edna, only to not find her. Kay goes to the police, and they check with neighbors, and search the surrounding area, to no avail. One day, Edna shows back up, and we are left wondering where she has been. A physician checks her out, and she seems fine, save for a bruise on her stomach. The three remain in the house, trying to figure out what to do, but something is not quite right. Edna’s behavior is very erratic. Staying in that house might not be a viable solution.
When we begin to take over the role of caregiver for our parents, it can be very stressful moment, especially when memory loss and a change in personality seem to be involved. I have had personal experience with that in recent months, and it can be brutally hard to deal with. At its worst, it was emotionally traumatic; at its best, it was merely anxiety-inducing, as I found myself trying to figure out what was the best approach to take. Kay and Sam’s journey with Edna in this movie struck a very personal chord with me, and all of the performances felt very honest and real, whether it was the swings in mood by Nevin, Mortimer trying to take the lead, while also respecting her mother’s feelings, and Heathcote’s Sam, attempting to help, attempting to understand, but feeling a bit helpless when Edna accuses her of stealing a ring that Edna had given to her a while back. In particular, when memory loss is involved, the emotions go back-and-forth, and seeing Edna try to hold on to memories, albeit in ways that are difficult to understand, is a moment that will stick with you, as well as when Kay and Sam are trying to show love and care for her when she seems to be going off the deep end. The emotional structure of “Relic” is strong, and what you keep in your memory after the film ends.
That would almost be enough to make an effective horror film, but James is looking to harness those feelings into a supernatural manifestation, and she succeeds exceptionally well. That is where the house comes in. It’s a familiar horror trope- “The Shining” and “The Grudge” are two of the better examples of it- but “Relic” does something a bit different with it, so that there are almost two realities within this one house. There are some places in the house that feel more ominous than others, which makes Edna’s state more perilous if one were to get trapped in them. Even Edna knows not to go certain places, however; what happens if someone does, though? It’s a fascinating, creepy sequence that reveals more questions than answers about the nature of the house.
And yet, there’s one final whammy in store in “Relic” that made this film fit together. But I’ll leave that for James to reveal to you. Needless to say, it’s the moment where the emotional and supernatural come together, and it’s an image you’re unlikely to forget, and one of the best endings in recent memory for a horror film.
