The Redeeming is a clever low budget mystery/horror. It's probably more categorized as horror but you spend a good part of the film curious about what the heck is happening. It's pretty much a single location, two-character dialog driven film (which I like), so you really have to pay attention. Worth a watch.
76 Reviews
Not worth losing an eye over.
nogodnomasters22 May 2018
Warning: Spoilers
A woman lives in an isolated home. On a windy night she is visited by a young man with a broken right arm. She helps him, but we can see she is disturbed about something. We suspect a relationship.
At about 40 minutes into the film we have a good idea about what is happening and it continues until 4 minutes from the end when we get a twist.
The film draws you in as you are curious where it all leads, but it is not a film I could sit through twice.
Guide: F-word. No sex or nudity.
At about 40 minutes into the film we have a good idea about what is happening and it continues until 4 minutes from the end when we get a twist.
The film draws you in as you are curious where it all leads, but it is not a film I could sit through twice.
Guide: F-word. No sex or nudity.
You will probably fall asleep before the end. Definitely avoid!
damnudamnme10 August 2018
Some of the reviews have compared the director Brian Barnes to Hitchcock. That would be like comparing the late, legendary Muhammad Ali to an old, fat, street thug who has no training or skill in the art of boxing. And yes, Brian Barnes is that bad! He thinks filming a moon that is hidden by clouds is art... He thinks filming a spider web is somehow a metaphor for suspense. How juvenile! And shame on all of you who dare speak Hitcock's name and Barnes in the same sentence. They don't even belong in the same cinematic universe!
Some of the reviews have compared this film to the iconic, award winning, marvel - 'Misery'. This is no misery! You may feel a bit miserable as you watch your life waste away watching this... But certainly this is no misery! Firstly the story lines do not even run parallel. And as much as I found the female lead, Tracey Ann Wood, enjoyable... She is no Kathy Bates! Kathy won an Oscar and the Global Awards for her performance for 'Misery'.
So let's dispel the above urban myths obviously spread by the 'canned' response of the director's friends, this film feels and moves like a B list movie. As mentioned above Brian Barnes hasn't a clue how to direct. He simply points the camera at actors and shouts action and cut. He does not pay attention to story and how story should be interpreted through the eyes of a cinematic lense. The film is spoilt by very childish directing and certainly not much thought went into shot selections. The film is further damaged by poor lighting decisions and a barely coherent script.
Ultimately the film is a one trick pony and the unfortunate thing is you have to waste almost an hour and twenty minutes of your life before this circus of a film decides to perform this trick!
The saving graces are a/ the female lead b/ the story concept . Had the director had a better understanding of the media of film.... he would of rearranged the script to make the story more compelling.
I gave the film a four star based only on it's potential. If the concept had been given to a director who possess guts, intuition, instinct and understands telling a story through the lense this could have been a big hit!
Some of the reviews have compared this film to the iconic, award winning, marvel - 'Misery'. This is no misery! You may feel a bit miserable as you watch your life waste away watching this... But certainly this is no misery! Firstly the story lines do not even run parallel. And as much as I found the female lead, Tracey Ann Wood, enjoyable... She is no Kathy Bates! Kathy won an Oscar and the Global Awards for her performance for 'Misery'.
So let's dispel the above urban myths obviously spread by the 'canned' response of the director's friends, this film feels and moves like a B list movie. As mentioned above Brian Barnes hasn't a clue how to direct. He simply points the camera at actors and shouts action and cut. He does not pay attention to story and how story should be interpreted through the eyes of a cinematic lense. The film is spoilt by very childish directing and certainly not much thought went into shot selections. The film is further damaged by poor lighting decisions and a barely coherent script.
Ultimately the film is a one trick pony and the unfortunate thing is you have to waste almost an hour and twenty minutes of your life before this circus of a film decides to perform this trick!
The saving graces are a/ the female lead b/ the story concept . Had the director had a better understanding of the media of film.... he would of rearranged the script to make the story more compelling.
I gave the film a four star based only on it's potential. If the concept had been given to a director who possess guts, intuition, instinct and understands telling a story through the lense this could have been a big hit!
Rave reviews all from new accounts with one review
thedunns-114631 May 2018
Seriously, every single positive review is from a new account with only one posted review, which all are somewhat similar and posted with days of each other. I tried to watch the film but it's so amateurish, it became unbearable. IMDB really needs to figure out how to manage what are obviously shill reviews from people involved with a production. Suggestion to those who post shill or fake reviews: cover your tracks by reviewing more than just your film and attempt some diversity with account names.
Contained Fun
MRP-Ent23 January 2019
This low-budget film is a solid contained thriller, especially when you take into account the difficulty of a) placing a film in only one location, and b) only having two characters in the movie, it does its job. It's got shades of "Misery" to it and the storm sound design adds to the creepy atmosphere. Decent performances and I liked the slower pace. It really works here to build the tension.
Awful
anouskasherriff10 February 2018
I must have watched a completely different film to everyone else who has left a review as i thought this film was absolutely awful The acting was diabolical and the story line was so long and slow I kept thinking to myself "surely it's going to get better by all the 5 star reviews"..NOPE. Please take my advise, avoid this waste of space at all costs.
Terrible trash with fake reviews
mjsreg12 May 2018
There is a big difference between low budget films made by people with talent and this kind of low budget film made by people who think they have talent.
It is terrible from start to finish. The acting is awful, the production is technically awful, and the story is benal and lacking any kind of tense strategy or flow that makes the viewer fel part of it.
On top of this, instead of accepting they have produced a pile of trash, whoever is responsible for this film have either written fake reviews or had other people write fake reviews for them.
There is NOTHING worth wasting your time on watching this rubbish. If I were able to rate it truly then it would be around a MINUS 3 star.
It is terrible from start to finish. The acting is awful, the production is technically awful, and the story is benal and lacking any kind of tense strategy or flow that makes the viewer fel part of it.
On top of this, instead of accepting they have produced a pile of trash, whoever is responsible for this film have either written fake reviews or had other people write fake reviews for them.
There is NOTHING worth wasting your time on watching this rubbish. If I were able to rate it truly then it would be around a MINUS 3 star.
Terrible
philipjb-165784 May 2018
Ever so slight twist at the end to a terrible plot. Worse acting than what you find on UK channel 5 on a weekday afternoon. At least you can forgive their acting because they cast a fit blonde usually. Imknow its a budget film but cinematically its hard to watch on the eyes unlike successful budget films. Quite a few blatant fake reviews on here from "people" that have never rated anything else. Honestly the worst film I have ever seen, and I saw Sharknado.
Art or just amateurish?
sjalkarjadottir18 May 2018
First and foremost ... this movie is UGLY.
Scene design, camera, colouring/filtering ... and especially lights in pretty much every scene is terrible ...
... but if that is intentional .. it has a very amateur-ish vibe .. as in .. amateurish 90s or so .. before youtube and gopro and HD cameras....
A lot of the movie is also in the night .. so colours are even more muted but scenes lack the specific contrast of more beautiful night scenes.
The acting .. hmm .. i did not like it. It felt wooden, at times grossly overacted .. or simply inappropriate. In the end, the story may have explained it a little, but even so, it did not feel fitting.
The story .. while not particularly bad, was mostly a 101 of a healing process .. seen a hundred times before.
This is one of those movies that i would like to give credit for trying something that may have been a bit too much for the budget and actors .. but i cannot. Whats left is a 2/10 for the effort but ultimately a failed execution.
Scene design, camera, colouring/filtering ... and especially lights in pretty much every scene is terrible ...
... but if that is intentional .. it has a very amateur-ish vibe .. as in .. amateurish 90s or so .. before youtube and gopro and HD cameras....
A lot of the movie is also in the night .. so colours are even more muted but scenes lack the specific contrast of more beautiful night scenes.
The acting .. hmm .. i did not like it. It felt wooden, at times grossly overacted .. or simply inappropriate. In the end, the story may have explained it a little, but even so, it did not feel fitting.
The story .. while not particularly bad, was mostly a 101 of a healing process .. seen a hundred times before.
This is one of those movies that i would like to give credit for trying something that may have been a bit too much for the budget and actors .. but i cannot. Whats left is a 2/10 for the effort but ultimately a failed execution.
An independent film which should be admired!
MADMIKE-9795313 November 2019
It littered with sofa critics and keyboard warriors who have absolutely no conception of how difficult it is to make a feature film, especially on a low budget with a limited amount of locations and actors.
This film is a masterpiece in it's own right. The composition, direction, screenplay and acting was all there for me. I commend everyone who was involved in making this film and will look forward to seeing your future work. Thoroughly enjoyed this. Congratulations!
This film is a masterpiece in it's own right. The composition, direction, screenplay and acting was all there for me. I commend everyone who was involved in making this film and will look forward to seeing your future work. Thoroughly enjoyed this. Congratulations!
Crock of Crap
jonerogers8 November 2018
I won't spend much time on this as i already wasted 85 minutes watching the film and really wish i had not. My partner and I have a rule that if we think a film is bad and it gets no better at the 10 minute mark we pull the plug. Unfortunately last night we slipped up and both did not want to offend the other.
Basically it really is bad, the acting is poor, the story could have been told in 3 minutes and saved the viewer watching the other 82 minutes of utter crud. i kept hoping that maybe it would turn and become good...oh no!!! it was as stale as a rich tea biscuit left out of the biscuit barrel for a year.
i rarely speak harshly but sorry the budget for this film must have been no more than £20 and that would be for the electric to power the film cameras.
save your money and gently skip away from this.
Basically it really is bad, the acting is poor, the story could have been told in 3 minutes and saved the viewer watching the other 82 minutes of utter crud. i kept hoping that maybe it would turn and become good...oh no!!! it was as stale as a rich tea biscuit left out of the biscuit barrel for a year.
i rarely speak harshly but sorry the budget for this film must have been no more than £20 and that would be for the electric to power the film cameras.
save your money and gently skip away from this.
Suspenseful Indie thriller
jason-scepter28 September 2019
The Redeeming is a psychological thriller that has a nice slow build of tension as it progresses. It centers around a woman in a home in a remote area who lets a young man in. Interesting twists in turns throughout. Great acting by Tracey Ann Wood and Ryan Wichert.
Home protection with no redemption
TheLittleSongbird19 June 2018
'The Redeeming' drew me into seeing it, with a cool poster/cover, an intriguing premise and as someone with a general appreciation for horror. That it was low-budget, which from frequent personal experience is rarely a good sign due to that there are so many poor ones out there, made me though apprehensive.
It is sadly however yet another film seen recently, hence some reiteration because the exact same strengths and flaws those films have are present here, that to me was incredibly disappointing considering its potential which it doesn't do anywhere near enough with. 'The Redeeming' is terrible, with a plethora of problems (huge ones too) and doesn't do enough with its potential, which was hardly small. There is next to nothing to recommend.
Lets start with the sole positive. The scenery is atmospheric and spooky.
Unfortunately, the scenery is not done justice by the rather direct to video schlocky way it's shot and edited and the drab colour palette, so much so it was hard to appreciate it, it was very clear that the film was made in a rush with no care or enthusiasm. In particular, the camera work was a nauseous assault on the eyes with its excessive amateurish-ness.
Going on further to the negatives, the story does feel paper thin, disjointed and over-stretched and some of it feels vague, under-explained in the last third where the film especially became duller, more predictable, more senseless and less scary. Too many characters are too sketchy and with nowhere near enough to make one want to endear to them. Their annoying and illogical decision making and behaviours frustrates.
Making the film feel bland and forgettable with not enough heart put into it. The effects are ropy at best, the sound quality is obvious and utilised cheaply (being too loud in the build ups and people's reactions) and it's best not mentioning the uniformly lumbering and histrionic acting.
Dialogue can be stilted and rambling, with lots of clichés and no depth whatsoever, while the pace goes to a standstill very quickly and drags on forever with very little going on worth caring about and useless padding, never recovering. Found too many the supposedly shocking moments not surprising or scary and the supposedly creepy atmosphere dreary, due to the excessive obviousness, a lot of dumb and vague moments and explanations and the lack of tension and suspense. Would not have minded the lack of originality (the film is extremely derivative and in a dumbed and watered down way) if the story and atmosphere were at least alright in execution, in reality they were both very poorly done.
A lot of 'The Redeeming' has underdeveloped plot elements and often nonsensical and confusing character motivations, while too many of the things to make you jump or shocked are far from creative or scary and are pretty tame. The ending makes the film finish on an incomplete and confused whimper.
There is not enough threat, and what there is of it tends to be used poorly, it is completely unimaginative and more odd than creepy, completely failing to show any sense of horror or creativity. Everything here is neither creative, suspenseful or nail-biting. Some badly sagging momentum too. The direction is leaden and like their heart was not in it or ill at ease.
Overall, awful with no redeeming value apart from an element that is difficult to appreciate with it being complemented so badly. 1/10 Bethany Cox
It is sadly however yet another film seen recently, hence some reiteration because the exact same strengths and flaws those films have are present here, that to me was incredibly disappointing considering its potential which it doesn't do anywhere near enough with. 'The Redeeming' is terrible, with a plethora of problems (huge ones too) and doesn't do enough with its potential, which was hardly small. There is next to nothing to recommend.
Lets start with the sole positive. The scenery is atmospheric and spooky.
Unfortunately, the scenery is not done justice by the rather direct to video schlocky way it's shot and edited and the drab colour palette, so much so it was hard to appreciate it, it was very clear that the film was made in a rush with no care or enthusiasm. In particular, the camera work was a nauseous assault on the eyes with its excessive amateurish-ness.
Going on further to the negatives, the story does feel paper thin, disjointed and over-stretched and some of it feels vague, under-explained in the last third where the film especially became duller, more predictable, more senseless and less scary. Too many characters are too sketchy and with nowhere near enough to make one want to endear to them. Their annoying and illogical decision making and behaviours frustrates.
Making the film feel bland and forgettable with not enough heart put into it. The effects are ropy at best, the sound quality is obvious and utilised cheaply (being too loud in the build ups and people's reactions) and it's best not mentioning the uniformly lumbering and histrionic acting.
Dialogue can be stilted and rambling, with lots of clichés and no depth whatsoever, while the pace goes to a standstill very quickly and drags on forever with very little going on worth caring about and useless padding, never recovering. Found too many the supposedly shocking moments not surprising or scary and the supposedly creepy atmosphere dreary, due to the excessive obviousness, a lot of dumb and vague moments and explanations and the lack of tension and suspense. Would not have minded the lack of originality (the film is extremely derivative and in a dumbed and watered down way) if the story and atmosphere were at least alright in execution, in reality they were both very poorly done.
A lot of 'The Redeeming' has underdeveloped plot elements and often nonsensical and confusing character motivations, while too many of the things to make you jump or shocked are far from creative or scary and are pretty tame. The ending makes the film finish on an incomplete and confused whimper.
There is not enough threat, and what there is of it tends to be used poorly, it is completely unimaginative and more odd than creepy, completely failing to show any sense of horror or creativity. Everything here is neither creative, suspenseful or nail-biting. Some badly sagging momentum too. The direction is leaden and like their heart was not in it or ill at ease.
Overall, awful with no redeeming value apart from an element that is difficult to appreciate with it being complemented so badly. 1/10 Bethany Cox
A excellent thriller that keeps you guessing....
clairefoord3 September 2017
We really enjoyed this suspense thriller. It kept us wondering how the plot was going to progress and what the intentions of the protagonist was - very well acted by Tracey Ann. The directing, camera work and lighting were all excellent. It reminded us of Misery and Tales of the Unexpected. As a lay person it is difficult to comprehend the time and effort that it takes to put this all together. A great achievement by all of those involved.
The Redeeming review
JoeytheBrit5 May 2020
A troubled woman allows an injured young man into her remote home one dark and stormy night - and not much at all happens after that. More or less a two-header with one character impotent and passive and the other a highly-strung shrew whose moods swing with the regularity of a pendulum, The Redeeming makes for very thin soup.
a great starting point
SLKoether12 July 2018
You can see the filmmakers/actors/cast/crew worked hard to make the best movie they could. B+ for effort and good luck on your next film. And to those that felt the need to tear down the creative works of others - let's hope the audience of your creative masterpieces are much nicer to you than you were to these folks.
All you wish a psychological thriller to be, and more
ringthebellsproductions25 August 2019
I love psychological thrillers and this one was so smart and kept me curious (and nervous!) the whole viewing. The acting is amazing, and the script and camera work are crafted in a really intelligent way. Recommended!
Suspenseful and tension filled.
cbax12319 July 2019
A deep psycho drama that centers around the relationship of two complicated characters. It's thrilling, disturbing and gets a lot done for a low budget movie. The tension is eerie and continuously builds toward a climax. I won't say anymore to spoil it!!
Draws you in
Filmwatcher6814 November 2018
Do not believe the 1 star ratings etc.. and no, people who leave higher reviews do not all work for anyone associated with the movie. It did make me think of the "misery" film, but only vaguely. It is low budget, but still worth a watch if you enjoy being drawn into a movie.
MAJOR flaw that nobody else appears to have picked up on though, was they are in the house, in storms, power is off.. does come back on a for a short time, but promptly goes back off again, and shortly after that, Joyce goes to the fridge to make something to eat for them both, opens the fridge door.. and BOOM, light on the fridge comes on.. despite the whole house being powerless and using candles for light ;) WHO missed that on checking the movie prior to release? ( my partner spotted this straight away, all credit to her )
We did enjoy the storyline though, and even the acting... it kept us very tense, both sat trying to work it all out.
MAJOR flaw that nobody else appears to have picked up on though, was they are in the house, in storms, power is off.. does come back on a for a short time, but promptly goes back off again, and shortly after that, Joyce goes to the fridge to make something to eat for them both, opens the fridge door.. and BOOM, light on the fridge comes on.. despite the whole house being powerless and using candles for light ;) WHO missed that on checking the movie prior to release? ( my partner spotted this straight away, all credit to her )
We did enjoy the storyline though, and even the acting... it kept us very tense, both sat trying to work it all out.
Excellent indie, one location thriller
Ink78923 August 2019
Film makes the most of its one location and small cast. Very well executed thriller with shades of the film Misery. I have a a soft spot for films done well with limited resources. This is a smart production from start to finish.
Tense drama with lots of atmosphere
pj-woodside4 August 2019
I'm a big fan of Indie movies, especially psychological horror stories where you don't know exactly what's going on, who the good guys are, or how the story will play out. These kinds of films don't announce their plot points the way formulaic Hollywood movies do, and that's one of the things I appreciate. The story has to unfold on its own terms. I always appreciate the skill it takes to make a movie with a tiny cast in one location and keep it suspenseful, and that's what this one does. Kudos to the filmmakers!
The Reedeming indeed!
maxsappa12 October 2018
Solid psychological thriller
craigahrens17 May 2019
A sign of great acting.... it didn't occur to me until I was well into this film that it's basically two main characters. That is how the good the acting is with the actors. The lead actress did an incredible job holding my interest. She plays crazy so well and takes you on a psychological journey. The lead male actor is good too but the lead actress was just absolutely terrific. A go see in my book.
Indie Psychological Thriller
GilbertS-8515 May 2020
The Redeeming starts like a horror movie but diverges into an eerie psychological thriller. There is a kind of darkness and mystery about the story that allows you to get further sucked in. I was always interested in what was going to happen next. Worth the watch!
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