Film Review: The Vigil – 6/10

‘I need you to be a Shomer…’

Catholic iconography terrifies me. A childhood spent being dragged around various churches with various statues of Our Lord nailed to the cross adorning every wall took its toll on my developing brain, especially when coupled with early viewings of such heretical material as The Exorcist and The Omen. Would I be as God fearing when faced with the God of a different religion? No, is the answer…

Yakov (Dave Davis) has recently removed himself from an Orthodox Jewish commune, but finds himself drawn back in when offered money to watch over the dead body of the elderly gentlemen for an evening – a common practice in his community. Things soon take a turn for the worst when Yakov is forced to confront some painful trauma from his past.

Now. this is one of those concepts that is clearly in ‘this would make a great horror film’ territory. And there are moments within The Vigil that are great. Davis is genuinely wonderful throughout in a demanding role which sees the chameleonic actor take on a number of different personas. Lovelorn and awkward. Haunted and downtrodden. Defiant and determined. He plays his hand perfectly. Writer/director Keith Thomas marries jarring jump scares with more meditative psychological horror in a way that will hopefully serve him well on his upcoming Firestarter remake, but ultimately, despite the genuinely unique concept, too much of this feels like stuff we have seen many, many times before. And sure, the execution is solid, but there just isn’t enough here to make The Vigil stand out in what is a crowded field.

Maybe next time.