The Power

Vampire Owl: It is the time to test our powers, right?

Vampire Bat: There is no need to test any power right now.

Vampire Owl: All powers need to be tested. We haven’t used them for some time.

Vampire Bat: The powers belong to all of us, forever. We don’t need to keep testing them.

Vampire Owl: These are basically skills. They weaken without practice.

Vampire Bat: Frankenstein needs to go through practicing skills, not us.

Vampire Owl: You mean to see that we have the powers like humans have lies.

Vampire Bat: Yes, lies are their superpowers, and we have ours.

Vampire Owl: I don’t think that we can have any stronger power than that.

Vampire Bat: Well, lies are immortal, but no human likes to hear the truth. Not even Mr Frankenstein in human form.

[Gets a masala bonda and three cups of white tea].

What is the movie about? :: The story takes place in East London in the year 1974. Trade unions and the government are now against each other as the economy is in crisis. Blackouts have been ordered to conserve power, leading to long time periods of darkness every night. Valerie (Rose Williams) is a young nurse who is supposed to work through the night on some day. She is also someone who loves being part of pediatrics. She used to be an orphan, and hopes that she can make a difference among the people in the poor community of the area. But as the matron finds her talking to a doctor against her advice on the first day itself, she puts her on night duty earlier than she is supposed to be. She is left in charge of the intensive care ward, and is asked to stay there at all times, as the whole place will be dark. But the power seems to go off rather too early, and she is left in the middle of nowhere, as she tries to get back to her level and ward.

So, what happens with the events here as we just keep looking? :: She has no idea about how to get to her assigned level, but is helped by the nurses of the only other ward which is working at night. Barbara (Emma Catherine Rigby) is the only other person who is in the ward, and she happens to be an old acquaintance. She is also not happy about being in the hospital, as she hopes to get married to someone rich, maybe a doctor. Soon, the generator which just manages to provide the minimum lights to the room goes out, and Barbara goes out to check, leaving Valerie behind with a candle. Soon, Valerie begins to have some strange visions, and even feels being pulled from behind. She needs to get some medical charts, but it is darkness everywhere. There is also a girl around there who hasn’t left with the other patients too. Is there some secret about the place that needs to be dealt with? Is there something supernatural about it which cannot be stopped? What could be hiding in the darkness and awaiting an opportunity?

The defence of The Power :: The movie attempts to depend the most on the atmosphere – the settings elevates the film all the time. The situation seems to favour the horror genre from the beginning to the end. The year of everything happening around here, and the historical background also seem to be things of interest. There is the feeling of danger present at all times, thanks to the visuals contributing so well here. The same also adds to a feeling of antiquity around here, as we are transported to that past successfully. It is more or less like a walk through a hospital museum. The horror is somewhat working, mostly due to the darkness and unpredictability rather than anything else. There is nothing clearly visible around here to bring the horror, and the uncertainty does work, even though we do end up asking for more. The movie also seems to move towards some message, even though that is not really achieved in the end.

The claws of flaw :: The movie mostly remains slow, even though there were so many opportunities to raise its level, and bring something special in between to speed up the pace here. When a horror movie which is only one and half hours long feels long, it means that there was the need for something to be done in between. A number of areas feel complex, and the explanations often feel strange. It seems to have more with the way this story is told, and the mystery is being built. The synopsis seems to have had more to offer in comparison to what we have here. How many demons could have been used here, and in what all means? The scope was endless in this atmosphere, and with this scope. But what we have here is half-baked in nature. The route to the ending is also nicely built, but we see that in the end, that is not strong enough. It needed to live up to the title of the film, but we see that there is a certain struggle regarding that too, with the movie not being strong enough with enough power.

The performers of the soul :: The movie depends a lot on Rose Williams to come up with a deep performance. With spirits around and possession also coming up, there is a lot more to be added around here. Even as she does so well, the movie is the one that lets her down with its inability to make her seem that good as she really is. She has more power than the movie itself, and would shine in another horror movie as the scream queen even more. In this particular movie, we are often confused about what her character is really about, and what she is actually trying to achieve. Emma Catherine Rigby doesn’t have that much to do around here, and she has to quickly disappear without making an impact, which we did feel that she would make. One would have expected more from her though. Diveen Henry has quite a strong presence in between, even though it is not there for too long. Charlie Carrick also has a smooth role, but it is also small enough. Shakira Rahman as Saba is also notable enough, and she also has her moments.

How it finishes :: The title, The Power might feel a little bit confusing with another movie releasing with the same name, in the same year. It is also a movie which could have done a lot more with its premise. What is required was more power rather than anything else, along with better focus. During these days, making an interesting horror movie requires more than just one spirit and an environment for it to thrive. Innovation has been a basic requirement for any horror film without a grand cast or lots of budget, and this one also required to keep that in mind for longer. This also makes one wonder why Amazon Prime Video is not acquiring quality horror movies like Netflix has been doing. It shouldn’t always be about Madres, The Manor and Black as Night. We all prefer Prime as there are multiple advantages to it, but there are so many movies from last year which Amazon can get into its bag. Let us hope that a good number of them will be of horror or thriller genre, and raise the bar.

Release date: 8th April 2021
Running time: 92 minutes
Directed by: Corinna Faith
Starring: Rose Williams, Marley Chesham, Diveen Henry, Mark Smith, Amy Beth Heyes, Emma Catherine Rigby, Maria Major, Paul Antony-Barber, Nuala McGowan, Robert Goodman, Sarah Hoare, Anjelica Serra, Charlie Carrick, Shakira Rahman, Joe Haddow, John Mackay, Gbemisola Ikumelo