I watched The Ward because it was directed by John Carpenter, plain and simple. In fact at this point, it's the last feature length film he's directed - and I'm a little surprised it's taken me this long to get to it, though truth be told, I haven't watched the last three theatrical releases he's made. I guess Escape from L.A. just broke me.
And yeah, this one is not very good either. But it's also not terrible. I've seen worse horror movies (some by Carpenter himself!) and I think what redeems it a bit is it has some strong performances by all the featured actresses, including lead Amber Heard (do not come at me with any Amber Heard hot takes; I will not have it!), Mamie Gummer (seen above), and none other than Vanderpump Rules alum Laura-Leigh herself (she made this three years before joining that show).
The story is kind of a mess, combining supernatural elements with the horrors inherent in a mid-1960's mental hospital, along with some twists that kind of work before falling apart completely. But Carpenter is a strong enough filmmaker that I was never bored, and while never really scared, I did get creeped out a few times.
The Ward is streaming on a number of different services; I watched it on Peacock.
2 comments:
It is uncanny that all the mental patients are so young and thin and attractive. What is an Amber Heard hot take??
Mainly anything related to the Johnny Depp trial. I've seen reviews on Letterboxd that bring that up and I'm just like, could we please not?
Post a Comment