Directed By Agnès Merlet
Starring Carice van Houten, Jenn Murray and David Wilmot
After young Dorothy Mills (Murray) abuses and almost kills an infant while babysitting, psychiatrist Jane van Dopp is sent to the secluded island town to investigate the incident and assess Dorothy’s mental state on behalf of the courts. After witnessing Dorothy slip in and out of different personae, Jane’s initial diagnosis is that the girl has multiple personality disorder. Meeting disapproving and unwelcoming puritanical locals at every turn in her efforts to learn more about Dorothy, Jane soon stumbles upon a group of townspeople using the girl as a conduit for a seance, and begins to suspect there are more sinister forces at work that psychiatric methods can’t explain.
If Dorothy has a major failing it’s that it relies too heavily on all-too-familiar conventions to nurture a sense of foreboding creepiness; the film hinges so much of its atmosphere on the trope of a secluded, god-fearing town oppressively adverse to newcomers that it’s hard not to feel like you’re sitting through another remake of The Wicker Man. Though beyond the liberal sprinklings of clichéd ideas and imagery lies a quietly effective, often unsettling supernatural drama that’s phenomenally well acted.
Allowing the core mystery to unfurl with a restrained, slow-burn pace, Merlet bathes the film in Irish fog-drenched creepiness and manages to foster a tangible sense of doom throughout. The complexly-layered character of Dorothy Mills and the supernatural creepiness that surrounds her is enthralling and unsettling in equal amounts, and despite retreading through some overused genre territory, the film has enough style, palpable atmosphere and satisfying mystery laid throughout to make it an incredibly creepy gem of a film that’s entirely worthwhile. Though the story itself is complex and rewarding, it’s elevated more so by the truly exceptional performances on display.
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A possessed young girl spitting gruff, foul-mouthed words in a man’s voice isn’t exactly an original thing to see in a horror film (or the average British housing estate) any more, and while Agnès Merlet throws in some of those overly familiar theatrics into proceedings, it’s the other aspects of Dorothy’s character that resonate more deeply. Murray handles the louder, showier roles with talented nuance, but it’s when Dorothy herself emerges from within the crowd of diverse multiple personalities that’s most powerful. Portrayed as a fragile, lonely and emotionally shattered girl burdened by unimaginable trauma, it’s an utterly astonishing and entirely heartbreaking performance that’s made all the more impressive considering it’s Jenn Murray’s first acting role. Carice van Houten is impressive, too, despite a less substantial role and her native Dutch accent bleeding through at times. She’s incredibly beautiful, brings a wealth of emotion and does a lot with a role that’s archetypal in its familiarity, but Murray is unquestionable the stand-out, and her performance is revelatory.
Anyone expecting the pea soup-spewing Linda Blair antics evoked by the cover blurb citing The Exorcist might be disappointed, but those looking for a quiet, unnerving supernatural gem will be immensely satisfied by Dorothy. An unfortunately clichéd set-up and a slightly awkward ending keep it from being anything resembling a classic, but it’s nonetheless a gripping, haunting film showcasing some of the most incredible acting to grace the horror genre.
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On the Blu-ray:
The Blu-ray disc released by Optimum sports a 1080p video transfer which maintains the film’s original 2.35:1 aspect ratio. It looks perfect, with facial detail looking fantastic and the lush and moody scenery of the Irish countryside setting all captured in immaculate detail. Optimum have included DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and PCM 2.0 audio tracks. The 5.1 track sound perfectly great, and though it’s not a showy film in the audio department, the creepy ambient sounds and dialogue are all clear and without issues throughout the film.
There’s not a lot on offer in the extras department, with only the theatrical trailer and a ‘Making Of’ feature present. The ‘Making of’ isn’t anything stunningly fascinating, but it’s extensive enough, and lengthier than most behind-the-scenes featurettes at 25 minutes. It’s not a jam-packed disc, but the A/V aspects are faultless, and are the perfect way to experience an undeservedly overlooked film that many didn’t get the chance to see in cinemas.
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Dorothy is available to buy on Blu-ray and DVD in the UK now.
Click here to order the Blu-ray from Amazon.co.uk, where it’s currently only £12.91.
(Note: The images above were captured and saved at a reduced quality, and though they give an idea of how the film looks, they aren’t intended to reflect the true quality of the Blu-ray image itself.)