THE GHOSTS OF EDENDALE (2004)

From its origins in cross-comparative mythology and oral storytelling to its subsequent refinement as literary fiction and, finally, as cinema, ghost stories have long scared and seduced with their spectral exorcisms of the possible afterlife and the hidden complexities of the shadowy human heart. Often reflecting the intimate fears of characters – everyday people confronting the spectral – the truly disturbing ghost stories challenge as much as they titillate with terrific imagery and themes.

While evoking horror is itself an admirable talent, and surface thrills remain the primary reason we enjoy supernatural movies, classic manifestations of occult anxiety, from the Robert Wise fright-festival The Haunting to the sadly under-appreciated The Changeling do more than shock; they mirror the dreads, vulnerability, and everyday anxieties of sympathetically evoked characters whose problems are similar to our own. While the low budget if ambitious Ghosts of Edendale, the solo directorial debut from Stefan Avalos, the co-drector of the uneven if stylish The Last Broadcast, doesn’t attain the emotional depths or technical perfection of the aforementioned classics, it does entertain while using its quiet approach and chillingly effective atmosphere to question our self complacency and preconceived safety in a world we know little about. Questioning perception -- the very tool with which we distinguish between the unreal from the commonplace, the comfortable from the horrific -- this fear fable is equal parts traditional legend and intimately challenging thriller, told in a style evoking both the rustic scary pleasures of ‘round-the-campfire’ tale-telling and the emotionally isolated claustrophobia of a Polanski film (if not as effectively!).
Young couple Kevin (Wastell) and Rachel (Ficara) pack up their lives and emotional anxieties and move into a home furnished by tasteful décor and spiritual debris from a tragic past whose spirits infect the present. Edendale Place, a hilly Los Angeles subdivision, is the principle character herein, expressing its displeasure and agony much like a human being. As disturbing as any ghosts are the absurdist characters – neighbors in the ‘business’ – whose obsession with filmmaking careers lend further tension to the couple’s already strained relationship. Recovering from a pervious breakdown, Rachel, a not very successful actress, needs more than aspirin when she happens to spot the spirit of a little boy; thinking it a hallucination, she soon learns that her new home was once the focal point of the ‘silent’ film industry days, and that a curse has infiltrated its walls since the death of Tom Mix, a cowboy matinee-style actor. As supernatural presences suggest themselves with alarming regularity, and Kevin’s attitude towards both his wife and life takes a terrifying turn, we know we’re in disturbing if familiar territory.

In a story which takes its time to establish character, this modern supernatural sensation of low budget effects and amateur if intriguing cinematography surmounts its technical failings by presenting a dramatic story whose desperate characters mirror – and lend believability too – the supernatural menace. If occasionally poorly lit and shot, and while the effects are often pedestrian, the narrative tension encourages us to look past the incredulous. This ghost story feels rather like a shadow of an even bigger, better fear fable – we wonder what the director could manage with a better budget. Poetically lush in its cinematography (in a minimalist, rough hewed shadowing of colors), the story is scathing, interrogating shared moral preconceptions, striking where you feel safest – home. While many will resent the ambiguity of the ending, those who enjoy the dream-logic of Polanski or Strindberg will appreciate the startlingly creepy disorientation the film evokes.
Despite the deficiencies of budget, a decent transfer retains the visual integrity of the shadowy interior of the house. Audio in 5.1 Dolby Digital is crisp. Extras for this obscure if ambitious effort include a commentary with director Avalos and producer Connor, and a 5.1 version of the music track. Subtitles are in English, Spanish and French. A behind-the-scenes production is next, followed by "Behind the Special Effect,” “The Remaking of Scene 125" (alternate ghostly scenes), deleted scenes including optional commentary, a trailer, and the obligatory photo gallery. While no classic, the scares are honest and the visual integrity high in this meaty ménage of the melodramatic and macabre. Certainly worth a watch!