‘Some people never let go’
Repression is a mystery horror film about a therapist who finds herself struggling to deal with a boy who can foresee the future. Also known as Marionette
Directed by Elbert van Strien from a screenplay co-written with Ben Hopkins the British-Luxembourg-Netherlands production stars Thekla Reuten, Peter Mullan, Bill Paterson, Rebecca Front and Sam Hazeldine.
Plot:
When therapist Marianne moves to a remote area of Scotland, her attempts at a new life is thrown off course by one of her patients, ten-year-old Manny who claims he can see and control her future.
Marianne struggles against both the wall of silence from her colleagues and her own mind as she tries to uncover the truth behind Manny’s drawings…
Reviews:
“It’s moody, Gothic in tone and look, and asks weighty questions with no easy answers. Until the tidy conclusion comes along, anyway, it runs a little overlong and rushes through important character beats, but Strien does succeed in creating a high concept thriller that doesn’t quite go where you’d expect.” Bloody Disgusting
” …van Strien and his co-writer Ben Hopkins throw so many loops around this story that the characters struggle to breathe. It seems the characters are here to service the plot rather than the other way around and while that makes sense on one level, it also makes for choppy viewing that’s hard to connect with, especially once the flashbacks come into play.” Eye for Film
“Overall, this story isn’t one that will astonish you with its groundbreaking new ideas, but it does break the rules from time to time. It’s an enjoyable and well-told movie. Marionette is speckled with ideas from lots of great tales about destiny, control, and one’s future being a force to be reckoned with.” Mother of Movies
“Marionette is a success in the way it takes a plot built upon a foundation of cliches and takes it to unexpected places. Unfortunately, it takes too long to get to the parts of the story that are in any way surprising and spends a bit too much time with its more predictable elements.” Next Best Picture
” …at first, the acting will seem stilted and dry, again I believe by design, as it begins to flow when the real and main story begins to pick up. The acting is smart, the cinematography is smooth and stylish, and the music is beautiful and haunting. You may not enjoy the twist (though, I did), but I think you’ll enjoy the lead-up as it’s smooth and gradual.” Nightmarish Conjurings
” …Reuten’s carefully managed performance holds much of the film together, even as the twists become increasingly strange […] Marionette is not just the Sixth Sense re-imagining that it is being billed as, instead it tackles complex questions about reality while also being an unnerving and interesting addition to the horror genre.” Screen Queens
“While it is chock full of horror tropes (creepy kids drawing creepy drawings, horrific flashbacks, self-immolation, etc.), it never quite falls into being boring or cliché. It keeps up the energy and we are invested in the characters enough to want to see where they go with all this.” That Shelf
Release:
In the UK, Signature Entertainment will release Repression on Digital HD on 28th September 2020.
In the USA, S&R Films will release the film as Marionette on On-Demand on Amazon and Vimeo on November 3, 2021. The film will be available on iTunes, Vudu/Fandango, and Google Play on December 3rd.
Cast and characters:
Thekla Reuten … Marianne Winter
Peter Mullan … Doctor McVittie
Bill Paterson … Mandelbaum
Rebecca Front … Maureen
Sam Hazeldine … Josh
Emun Elliott … Kieran
Pearl Chanda … Margie
Elijah Wolf … Manny
Jochum ten Haaf … Campbell
John Scougall … Officer Stewart
Marnie Baxter … Manny’s Mother
Craig McDonald-Kelly … Cameron
Elisabet Johannesdottir … Kim Kaplan
Geoffrey Newland … Manny’s Father
Martin Donaghy … Oscar
Production companies:
Accento Films
Black Camel Pictures
BosBros
Samsa Film
Filming locations:
Largely filmed on location in the former Catholic Junior Seminary for Scotland, St Mary’s College, Blairs, Aberdeen.
Trailer:
