‘Gwen (2019)’ mini-review — Bad times in the Welsh hills

Gwen follows a young girl must keep her family from falling apart as her community turns against them for mysterious reasons.

60-second review: Dark storm clouds seem to be rolling into the small Welsh village where Gwen takes place constantly — both literally and figuratively. The film is relentlessly dark as the family of women at the center — consisting of mother Elen (Maxine Peake), teenager Gwen (Eleanor Worthington Cox), and youngest Mari (Jodie Innes) — struggles through plight after plight including losing their father to the war, their farm falling apart, and the owners of the nearby mine threatening their land. The movie is appropriately tense, atmospheric, and filled with a sense of dread.

However, it struggles to do anything with all that tension. Director William McGregor, in his film debut, proves he's adept at creating a mood of terror and satisfyingly mixes in elements of gothic and folk horror. But the story never takes off. The journey to its conclusion is so well-crafted, engrossing, and seemingly intentional, but it never says more than what's on the surface. And unfortunately, the conclusion doesn't do anything but add another layer of darkness on the already grim narrative.

It's easy to compare Gwen to Robert Eggers' 2015 folk horror The Witch as both deal with a young woman coming of age in a complicated family situation and set against the backdrop of a dreary time. However, The Witch has tangible themes and takes a full dive toward horror whereas Gwen stays in the real world, making it less compelling. It's unfortunate considering there's so much strong craft on the screen. I want to see more from McGregor. He has the directoral talent, he just needs a good story to tell.

Where to watch Gwen: Streaming exclusively on Shudder on August 16th.

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Hey! I'm Karl. You can find me on Twitter here. I'm also a Tomatometer-approved critic.

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