Synopsis:
What do a porn star, ex-soldier, Islamic extremist, quasi-mute and handsome bi-sexual have in common? Shared demon dreams, of course.
Five strangers – all visiting the same therapist – have the same dream every night: they find themselves in an old castle, being stalked by a pale-faced demon. Their therapist does some research and finds that the castle exists in Iraq, and she convinces the ragtag group to make the journey. They do. At first, the nightmares subside. And then, eventually, terrible things begin to happen, and they all realize that it was never just a dream.
This story was inspired by the Kurdish legend of Kawa.
Thoughts:
I’m not one for telling people to support a movie just because it’s something new and different. I don’t care if a movie is being remade for the 4th time: if I liked it, I’ll tell people about it. I won’t tell people to see a movie solely because it is different: it also has to be good.
Thankfully, this movie is both original and good.
This is the first English-language horror movie shot in Iraq, which gives it a unique style and look, which really helped me to be able to dive into the movie immediately. There were times when the meager budget shone through, but that never applied to the look of the film. I absolutely loved the setting.
I was a huge fan of the story as well. I couldn’t help but think of Nightmare on Elm Street during the dream sequences – die in the dream world, die in the real world – but it was all through a wholly unique lens. Instead of walking on melted stairs, our characters walk through the very real halls of an ancient castle, stalked by the pale-faced demon advisor in service of a mad king and his brain-eating queen.
If that last sentence didn’t convince you that you need to watch this as soon as possible, I don’t know what will.
As we’re slowly drawn into the madness of the dream, we realize that not only can they die in the dream, but the events of the dream can have an effect on present day. It becomes clear: stop the demon in the past or wake up to find the world changed forever.
Like I said, this is something a little different from what I’m used to seeing. It’s probably something different from what the vast majority of people are used to seeing. Aside from the occasional bout of wooden acting, I can assure you that it is well worth your time. The story takes a number of twists and turns that all worked extremely well. I was a HUGE fan of the ending. I’ll be thinking about some of the scenes in this movie for a very long time.
If you’re looking for something a little different in your horror films, give this a watch.
Rating: 4/5
Curse of Mesopotamia is now available on VOD. Be sure to check it out.