Lore is a British horror anthology featuring four eerie tales told by the campfire. A mysterious tour guide, Darwin (Richard Brake) leads a group of friends on a camping trip. Sat by the campfire, he encourages them to share scary stories. But, Darwin clearly harbours some kind of ulterior motive. Will our group of sexy twenty-somethings make it out alive?
So for those of us with back problems, you might remember the 90s Nickelodeon show Are You Afraid of the Dark. Lore bears narrative wrapper bears more than a strong resemblance to that series, even down to the roaring flames before a tale is told by members of the ‘Midnight Society’.
Lore, like most horror anthologies, is a mixed bag; some of the stories fall flat.
The first tale, Shadows, follows Daniel (Andrew Lee Potts) who is being chased by criminals, presumably to collect unpaid ill-gotten gains. Daniel breaks into a warehouse seeking sanctuary, unaware of the dark and sinister presence lurking inside. While the twist was interesting, the effects in this particular story do let it down somewhat, as does the pacing.
The second story, The Hidden Woman, is the weakest of the four by far. The Hidden Woman is a a by the numbers haunted house sequence, where a mother and her son are tormented by a breakdancing ghost. This type of story typically hinges on the ability to build suspense, through misdirection and tension, but The Hidden Woman doesn’t quite nail those fundamentals which results in a pace wading through mud.
The third story, Cross Your Heart, is where Lore starts to improve, thanks largely to Rufus Hound’s involvement. Hound injects much-needed comedy and energy into this dark tale of infidelity and cult shenanigans reminiscent of The Wicker Man.
The fourth and final story, The Keychain Man, is by far the best of the bunch and the best case for Lore to turn into a British equivalent to VHS. A group of friends, Natasha (Sarah Lewis Obuba), James (Jacob Anderton) and Matt (Christopher Mulvin), find themselves up against a Jason Voorhees-like killer at a cinema. In between the great jokes and performances of the three leads, there are some terrifically gory moments.
That final story and the twist that wraps the whole thing together, does hint a premise with a lot of potential. Perhaps Lore could turn into a great platform for British directors to showcase their horror chops? The potential for a sequel featuring more stories like the last two segments is promising.
However, the film’s ambitions fall short due to its limited budget. While Lore includes some commendable cinematography and writing, these elements are not enough to elevate it to a high score.
Lore will be available to stream exclusively on the IFC Channel from 26th August, in Select UK Cinemas from 27th September.
