Oddity

Everytime you go to a clothing store there is a chance you will see some mannequin dolls. Usually it is to show off some clothes that´s new for the season or they might use them for other purposes as well. Whenever i see a mannequin doll in a store i don´t really think much about them, but i do remember when i saw a strange one in Germany on my second trip there in the autumn of 1998. I was on a cruise ship vacation to the German city of Kiel and in this city they had like a horror shop with everything from horror merchandise, VHS horror movies, horror board games and some strange horror objects i have never seen before. Inside this store there was a strange looking mannequin doll standing towards a wall and it was especially the face that looked strange. It was almost like it had been burned and was deformed in some ways. If i had a camera with me i would have taken a picture but i didn´t carry one with me and back in 1998 we didn´t have cell phones with a camera so i can only describe it. It was definetely the most creepy mannequin doll i have ever seen. I remember that the owner noticed that i was looking at it and first spoke in Germany and i said:- Im sorry i don´t speak German. He said:- No worries, i was just saying a pretty cool mannequin doll right? I said:- Yes indeed, i have never seen anything like it. We talked about the mannequin doll and he told me he bought it from an older gentleman who collected mannequin dolls in the countryside. A very bizarre story and he said this older man was seen as very odd having this odd hobby collecting them. I had to leave after our conversation and go on board the boat again ( we were only allowed a couple of hours on land until the boat leaves ), since i had dinner before visiting this store. A creepy memory of my mannequin experience in Germany. Speaking of mannequin dolls there are some horror movies that include mannequin dolls worth a watch. For example if you have not seen the 1988 horror movie Pin from director Sandor Stern ( who also directed Amityville 4 - The Evil Escapes ) this is a film you should check out if you want a horror film with a mannequin doll, or from a medical standpoint would be called a anatomy doll. An interesting story where you have to figure out if Pin really exist or if it´s just your imagination. Legendary actor Terry O´Quinn plays Dr. Linden and as always deliver solid acting. Let´s stay within the mannequin dolls territory and talk about a horror film known as Oddity. This is a film i have only have read the plot about and seen the poster and it did caught my attention for the cool poster design. This is an Irish horror film and i have really enjoyed Irish films in the past so of course i had to give Oddity a chance. Is it possible that Odity is much better than i expected or is this a film that will mostly be forgotten about once you have seen it?

One year have passed since Dani ( Carolyn Bracken ) was found brutally murdered in her and her husbands Ted´s ( Gwilym Lee ) house. One day Dani´s blind sister Darcy ( Carolyn Bracken ) shows up at Ted´s house where he introduce her to his new girlfriend Yana ( Caroline Menton ). Darcy believe she knows what happened to her sister since she is a psychic medium and confront both Dani and Ted. But something seems odd with the strange gift that Darci brought with her to the house.

At certain moments every year we come across a horror film that actually feels a bit refreshing and turns out to not be too predictable. And that´s exactly how i felt while watching Oddity since this film actually tries to stay away from mainstream horror films and moves in a different direction. Are there elements of mainstream horror in Oddity? Sure, but considering the mystery surrounding the strange mannequin doll you see in this film that´s a detail that really helps Oddity become interesting. If you look at the details of this mannequin doll you can clearly see it looks like no other mannequin doll you have ever seen. This is something i really appreciate that they decided to make this doll very different from what we have seen before. I think it´s important to be creative if you are going to include a doll in a horror film instead of copying other films in a similar genre. But that´s not all to be pleased about and i have to talk about the gorgeous cinematography from Colm Hogan ( who also did cinematography on the beautiful Irish film Foscadh ). You can tell he really wanted to put in a lot of effort in certain scenes by capturing a very powerful presentation. The acting in this film is of top quality right from the start until the finish and there is especially one actress we need to talk about. And that is actress Carolyn Bracken ( who i recognized from the horror film You Are Not My Mother ) who actually plays two sisters in this film. How she was able to play these two sisters and make them feel like two very different characters, that´s very difficult to do as an actor and she does this brilliant. The horror scenes are very effective and they are more atmospheric than i expected so that was a nice surprise. Director Damian Mc Carthy does not only deliver one of the most good looking horror films of this year but this is definetely one of the better horror releases in general this year. Oddity is powerful enough to show that there is hope for the horror genre if you use the right tools and creativity as well. A must watch if you are a true fan of creepy horror films and want to experience something different and fascinating. Irish horror is alive and well and Oddity is a living proof of that.

Rating: DDDD