In 1892, with their new respective spouses accompanying them, exes Emma Strand (Scottie Thompson) and George Ford (Jilon VanOver) bump into each other at a California beach. Lillian Ford (Vivian Kerr, who also writes and directs), invites Emma and her husband, Albert Strand (Connor Paolo), to their house for dinner. “Séance” (2024) is about their time together. What are they thinking? With a classical Hollywood vibe encasing more modern sensibilities, Kerr’s sophomore, slow burn feature never slumps.
Most actors turned filmmakers take the lead, but Kerr shows keen judgment in letting Thompson play the protagonist. Thompson has her own independent style, but is reminiscent of Carla Gugino and Rachel Weisz in the way that she can play a character who could be deemed unlikable, but an audience can still be invested in her because she is so interesting to watch. Emma is a human being with needs and wants, sympathetic and horrible. She has a career, but her latest marriage seems to already be rocky. She seems to be on good terms with her first husband and shows kindness to Lillian. “Séance” is mostly told from her point of view and depicts the contradictions within herself as embodied in her relationships with the other three characters. Emma is a high minded practical intellectual, but she is also a physical body who wants to ignore her brain. Knowing better does not mean doing better.
George is a man of his times and performs the rules of society on the world’s stage, which means that he is often at the center of constant tension among the four between behaving naturally and appropriately while together, but away from public scrutiny, everyone is gradually unraveling under the weight of their authentic agenda. The Fords are mourning the loss of their daughter, Hazel, and he bristles at his wife’s display of emotion. He seems thrilled to see Emma and does not overtly compete with Albert but treats him cordially. He is affluent, but he cannot have everything.
Albert was my favorite character, and Kerr proves to be a great writer because she created a man that embodies positive masculinity despite his flaws, and his plot line was completely unpredictable. Based on the way that Emma talks about Albert, he sounds like one of those weaponized incompetence guys, but Paolo never plays him like that. Each character tends to run roughshod over Albert instead of treating him like a person who does not exist to fulfill their needs. It is such a nice change to have a male character with the most common sense. Albert sees red flags and wants to run. Emma asks him to be decisive then when he is, others ignore his stated preference. He feels like a gender bended character who would normally be a woman character, but those characteristics are given to a man. Albert was reminiscent of the trans character in “Little Bites” (2024) and feels queer coded. I’m enjoying an emerging archetype of men aware of their vulnerability because of their difference from the prevailing paradigm. His character’s journey is to assert and enforce his boundaries instead of being agreeable without losing his positive characteristics and constantly giving in to others’ requests. When he does start speaking his mind, it is delicious. Stand up, Albert.
Kerr gives herself the scene chewing role. As “Séance” unfolds, Lillian’s true motives become more obvious, but initially it is unclear if she is sinister since George clearly still has a flame burning for his first wife and treats his current wife with less warmth. Of all the actors, Kerr feels the most modern in her performance, and her character is the most archetypical of the four with less time devoted to fleshing her out. Her final onscreen appearance did not fit within the framework of the entire narrative. If Kerr wrote the role with herself in mind, did she subconsciously give herself the short shrift? Sometimes in the hurly burly of life, people place themselves last, and while Lillian’s story is key to the film, she only gives herself so many notes to play in this symphony.
If you go into “Séance” without expectations, you will enjoy it, but it is billed as a horror and thriller, which may set up expectations that will not be met and could elicit hostile reactions, which would be unfortunate because it is a good movie even if it does not take the obvious road. It has horror elements, but is more of a combination of drama, thriller and romance. After you finish it, you will immediately compare it to a classic Hollywood movie, and if you are a movie lover, there is a point in the story where everything clicks, and you know how everything will come together.
“Séance” is a pleasure to watch because it is a great character study about conflicting desires and discovering those desires feels like getting a warm chocolate chip cookie. Kerr has fun using different combination of interactions. The most unexpected first pairing was when Lillian and Albert are left alone at the dinner table. By the end, everyone just drops the pretense and lets it all hang out. If you enjoy domestic dramas, this this film is for you.
“Séance” earns its place as one of the best trainwreck dinner party movies that are impossible to look away from. The underlying premise is such a bad idea within these characters’ world that half the fun is seeing them twist about. It is very absorbing melodrama without turning into eyerolls. Also, dinner parties always have a sumptuous feel, which is enhanced because it is a period film set in the nineteenth century. Even though this film is supposed to be an indie, it did not look like it. Costume designer Nina Fuller nailed the looks, and the jewelry stood out. Everyone is fully clothed, but it feels very sensual especially as the women wander around the house in their corsets and under skirts. Regardless of whether it is historically accurate, it enhances the gothic vibe.
Kerr and cinematographer Johanna Coelho have a strong visual style. “Séance” gives a first impression that it will be a daytime horror with the slow-motion introduction, the oversaturated sunlight and contrast of the joyous laughter with the unsettling images of corruption creeping into the frame. The rest of the film is more understated, but it is always a relief to see night scenes with no difficulty (looking at you, “Game of Thrones”). The underwater scenes were lyrical, and how could they afford to get the kind of cameras that could be used underwater? Regarding the story, theoretically the denouement makes sense, but it did not entirely work for me, especially considering the final shot.
“Séance” is a movie for adults interested in people, not for thrill seekers. It is about people at their lowest point emotionally, morally or relationally. It does not stick the landing at the last moment, but it is a forgivable lapse considering most of the film. I still need to see Kerr’s first film, “Scrap” (2022).
