When signing up to review The Broken I had no idea what kind of film it was. Thus the fact that I hated every second of it is arguably more a result of my intolerance to horror films than any fault on the behalf of the filmmakers (or my editors).
The story follows Gina, a beautiful young Londoner, played by Lena Heady. After getting into a car crash, she finds her grip on reality beginning to slip as her past and present bceome increasingly difficult to reconcile.
Ceilings leak, mirrors break and X-ray scans appear inversed as Gina tries to unravel what happened to her that day.
In terms of execution, one cannot help but compare it to Hitchcock’s timeless Psycho, or even more to Gus Van Sant’s dubious shot-for-shot remake. Although not in black and white, the palette of The Broken almost undetectably shifts to blue or greyscale for the scenes that are meant to send shivers all the way down to your toes.
The scenes appear fragmented from the very start, instead of freely flowing each begins separately, rhythmically adding to and subtracting from the dramatic tension. Sean Ellis almost apes Hitch’s indelible style and techniques. He keeps violence entirely absent from the first half of the film, but it is always bubbling away just below the surface so that by the time blood is drawn, the effect is nail-biting.
I have a suspicion that The Broken isn’t, in fact, as bad as it seemed whilst I watched it. It might even be quite good. So if you like your films to come with fear-inducing noises, everyday objects acting strangely, shifting identities, and at least a modicum of psychological trauma then this is one for you. Personally I am making sure I’m not sleeping on my own tonight
