Written By: Ryan Dailey
Eddie Lengyel’s Sluagh Awakens manages to do multiple things at once. It manages to blend multiple genres together and keeps the story from going too far off the rails. The second thing it does is be a very independent film with bigger budget sensibilities and production. Let me elaborate. The pacing is adequate, the cinematography, audio and lighting are some of the best seen in recent low budget films. The script is as hit or miss as most scripts are and there are some scenes where the viewer might wonder if there was a better take that could have been used.
Not that the script or acting is awful, not by any means. There are points in the film where either the dialogue or the delivery came across as awkward, which adds to the charm.
The film balances tropes with something not explored in horror, that being Irish folklore in the form of the Sluagh (host of unforgiven dead). The monster in the woods trope is a tired one, but adding this bit of unknown folklore makes the experience somewhat new.
Sluagh Awakens feels as though it jumps around a bit and this throws off the cohesiveness of the story, but it is not 12 Monkeys levels of jarring by any means.
Overall, the film is highly enjoyable. One can chart Lengyl’s growth in his career if one were to compare it to Mother Krampus 2 or Hellweek. Lengyel and his works are going to be the ones to watch in the coming years. If given the budget and the chance, Lengyl could be the next James Wan.
This film earns a spot on your shelf right next to The Leprechaun franchise as must watch Saint Patrick’s day horror. It has the right amount of camp and legitimate horror to fit right alongside that cult favorite franchise.
From research, this reviewer found that ITN is going to distribute the film both physically and on streaming, but I could not find it anywhere as of the time of this writing. When it does finally reach the horror nation at large, be sure to give this a watch. It is a solid 6.5 out of 10.