'LAIR': Find A Better Hideout {Movie Review}

Often films try to stuff or force multiple layers into the story. Such is the case for Adam Ethan Crow's Lair, a mystery horror about a man trying to prove his friend's claim that he was possessed by a demonic spirit to overturn his murder conviction, all while a family is forced to face their demons metaphorically and literally. These two stories link together through the family staying in a flat that is rigged with cameras and creepy props to hopefully bring the spirit out of hiding. It's definitely a mouthful for a film that never really satisfies either storyline in the end.

Corey Johnson takes the lead as Steven Caramore, a man determined to clear his friend's name. He makes it known that he is the lead, because any moment he is on screen there is a rapid-fire moment of poorly timed jokes (involving ex-wives and sweatshops) which is played out in the very first scene he is introduced. It makes it hard to see Corey's character likable in any aspect. Not to mention after he sets up this "haunted house" experience for this family, you forget all about why he is playing big brother in the first place. The family's issues are all crammed together and swept under the rug as well.

There were many well-crafted shots in the first half of the film. Things begin to take a turn in the flat, things begin to take a turn behind the camera as well (both metaphorically and literally). When the older daughter Joey (Anya Newall) has some friends over who end up brutally murdered, the film kicks up in pace and rushes to the end. We skip days ahead to the entire family being murdered, before jumping back in time to see how the family was ultimately murdered. A statue seen in the opening shot of the murders is the demonic object possessing people, but the film doesn't answer anything about where it came from.
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The film honestly leaves you with more questions than it provides answers. It would have done better to focus on the family and their issues and how they fed into an evil spirit taking hold and feeding on the negativity. The cuts and time skip towards the end of the film leave some wondering why the skip was necessary when it could have played out normally. Instead, Lair gives us few jump scares and characters we don't sympathize much with.

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Author

Hoping to break into the horror genre, Justin Cook McAfee graduated with a creative writing degree from Full Sail University. Since then, he has picked up videography, volunteered at the Sundance Film Festival, and started his own podcast. With his ever growing movie collection, Justin hopes to one day write and direct his own films. Until that moment calls, he spends his nights in the dark watching new horror movies. Justin is excited to be a part of the HorrOrigins team and ready to further his writing talents. Who would have thought seeing Mufasa die so many times as a kid would push him to horror?