10 Perfect Psychological Horror Movies You've Never Heard Of
4. A Dark Song
In Liam Gavin's directorial debut, Sophie Howard (Catherine Walker) hires deplorable occultist Joseph Solomon (Steven Oram) in the hopes of making contact with her murdered son.
Although the outline hints at a conventional spooky story, A Dark Song is a gripping drama that deals with unresolved grief, self-destruction, and psychological abuse. And while Sophie is initially scared at the prospect of dealing with black magic, she soon comes to realise Joseph may pose a bigger threat when he claims she cannot leave the premise under any circumstances until the months-long ritual is complete.
By promising to reunite Sophie with her dead child, Joseph has absolute control over her. So long as he says his actions are part of the ceremony, Joseph can do anything, including forcing Sophie to drink his blood, watch him pleasure himself, or have sex with him. All the while, Sophie has to wonder whether the ritual is legit or if Jospeh cooked everything up to satiate his own carnal urges.
A Dark Song is so laser-focused on telling a gritty and personal story, it rarely comes across as a supernatural flick.