Amulet – Review (4/5)

AMULET is a new horror movie from Magnet Releasing. It’s a dark mystery that slowly unravels and pulls you into a world of pain and punishment. Honesty, the less you know, the better. Just keep an open mind and take it all in. Read our full Amulet review here!

AMULET is a new indie horror movie that doesn’t shy away from gore. If you were wondering what hell might look and feel like, then this movie definitely gives you a good idea. Also, I loved the ending.

Sure, it gets a little crazy (some might say “artsy”) towards the end, but it all works. And that final scene is pure gold!

Continue reading our full Amulet review below.

A largely unknown but brilliant cast

When watching Amulet, you shouldn’t expect to see many familiar faces. Obviously, there is the wonderful and always enigmatic face of Imelda Staunton. And honestly, she really is more than enough reason to watch this movie. However, she only has a smaller supporting role in Amulet.

The real stars of this horror movie are Carla Juri and Alec Secareanu. They are both truly brilliant in their portrayals. And both get to show some very diverse sides of their respective characters as the plot evolves.

Carla Juri is pure magic as Magda. So reserved and pulled back in many ways, which just draws you in. You might recognize Carla Juri from Blade Runner 2049 (2017) or Brimstone (2016). To me, this is a break-out performance that I hope will be recognized.

Alec Secareanu is equally gentle and calm in portraying his character Tomas. He is a mystery that also seems like an open book, which is both comforting and a bit scary at the same time. Alec Secareanu was in the 2017 movie God’s Own Country and is well into a good acting career. When watching him in Amulet, you can understand why.

Check out Amulet on VOD and Hulu now!

Romola Garai wrote and directed Amulet. You might already know her as an actress where she’s been in movies such as Atonement (2007) and the Born to Kill mini-series (2017). In fact, she’s still doing many acting jobs and has several movies in post-production.

After watching Amulet, I must admit that I really hope she’ll continue writing and directing as well. The fact that this movie is her feature film debut seems unbelievable. Romola Garai only has her 2012 short film Scrubber as a writing and directing credit prior to Amulet.

I fully realize that this movie won’t be for everyone. However, if you enjoy horror movies to their core and don’t mind when things move slowly and then get brutal, you should definitely check out this one as well. Meanwhile, I’ll be over here waiting for Romola Garai to get started on her next movie!

Amulet is out in select theaters and On Demand from July 24, 2020. On November 19, 2020, Amulet will also be available on Hulu.

Details

Director: Romola Garai
Cast: Carla Juri, Alec Secareanu, Anah Ruddin, Angeliki Papoulia, Imelda Staunton