‘Dark. Evil. Awake.’
The Moor is a 2023 British horror film about a psychic investigating the haunted moor where a young boy’s body is apparently buried.
Directed by Chris Cronin – making his feature-length directorial debut – from a screenplay written by Paul Thomas.
The Nuclear Tangerine production stars Sophia La Porta, David Edward-Robertson, Elizabeth Dormer-Phillips, Bernard Hill, Mark Peachey, Vicki Hackett, Dexter Sol Ansell, Mia Vore, Trevor Dwyer-Lynch, Velton Lishke, Duggal Ram, Jack Wagman, Mark Williams, Billie Suggett, Margaret Brearey and Aatif Ati Zafar.
Plot:
Claire (Sophia La Porta) was just a child when her best friend was abducted and murdered. Twenty-five years later, Bill (David Edward-Robertson), the dead boy’s father, has a plan to learn the truth about what really happened.
With the help of psychic Eleanor (Elizabeth Dormer-Phillips), they venture deep into a haunted moor where something dark and evil stirs at their presence…
Reviews:
“Only in the film’s last third do the supernatural elements really introduce themselves, but the director handles this transition seamlessly; he may save his most shocking reveal until the film’s closing moments, but the sense of dread he builds up means that The Moor’s climax is both alarming and, strangely, satisfying. La Porta and Robertson excel in their roles…” Bloody Flicks
“Though long, The Moor needs that time to let the melancholy and horror seep in; like a good cup of Yorkshire tea The Moor needs time to stew. The end result is an emotional, haunting, and upon occasion, harrowing, tale of grief, guilt and ghosts. An exceptional feature debut, The Moor places Chris Cronin to the forefront of burgeoning genre voices that we can’t wait to see more of. ” The Hollywood News
“Every once in a while, the movie switches to a found-footage style, which didn’t work for me […] Yet, in the grand scheme of The Moor, my qualms amount to little more than a minor annoyance. At the end of the day, the positives of this film vastly outweigh the negatives. The great characters, excellent story, and terrific scares make The Moor the best movie I’ve seen so far at FrightFest.” Horror Obsessive
“Always sombre and serious in tone, The Moor places harrowingly intense emotions in extremis, as its characters, unable to escape either recent history or ancient lore, find themselves travelling in an endless, ritualised circle of remorse, recrimination and deluded redemption. Cronin comes to his feature debut as a well-travelled director of award-winning shorts, but he nonetheless brings an extraordinary maturity to both the difficult material here and its careful handling.” Projected Figures
“It may take a bit of effort to get through some of The Moor’s slower moments, but the final will reward that effort. Whether what happens after the fade to black is meant to be real, a nightmare or the delusions of a shattered mind are left deliberately ambiguous. Either way, it made my skin crawl.” 4 out of 5 Voices from the Balcony
YouTube reviews:
Release:
The Moor had its world premiere at FrightFest in London on August 26, 2023.
Trailer:
Working title:
Those Who Remain
Filming locations:
Yorkshire, England
Technical specs:
2 hours 2 minutes
