Charlotte

What would you do if you were alone at home one night, in an isolated place, and a tear-stricken schoolgirl came to the door asking for your help, wanting to come inside? We all like to imagine that we’d be there for someone in distress, regardless of circumstances, but the truth is that some men would be nervous – afraid of putting themselves in a situation where they could be accused of inappropriate behaviour. Nevertheless, when Charlotte (Georgia Conlan) arrives at the remote house inhabited by Roy (Dean Kilbey), something seems off. He seems concerned for her. He seems hesitant. He also seems to be hiding something.

Charlotte feels unsafe with her father, she says. An initial request to stay the night – he does have a convenient spare bedroom – turns into a plea to hide out there for a few days until her mother gets back from a trip. Roy insists that she still attend school. He doesn’t want people to think that something has happened to her. But why doesn’t he call the authorities, or at least look up a relevant charity that might provide advice? His excuses begin to wear thin – even before he gets a visit which will set viewers further on edge.

Is Roy a troubled man who’s searching for redemption? Could he be Charlotte’s best hope in spite of everything? Is she what she appears to be? The situation is further complicated when we learn that another local girl has gone missing. Meanwhile, Charlotte finds herself under pressure from another angle, as she attracts the attention of school bullies, and we see a side of her personality very different from that of the sullen child on the verge of tears with whom we have become familiar.

This is one of two films at Frightfest 2024 for Kilbey, who also appears in Members Club. They’re very different roles, but he does have an everyman quality which is an asset to both, and at times he seems more human here than Conlan, who takes a long time to let the audience in. The film hinges on a twist, whilst building in some additional thriller elements to give it momentum in the second half, but it really could have benefited from building up the human element more in order to encourage viewers to invest. It could also do with ditching the retread of key plot points near the end, which doesn’t achieve much except to patronise the audience.

Overall, there’s too much reliance here on pre-existing audience emotions about certain topics, and not enough effort made to forge direct connections. The actors are capable enough that they can just about make the premise convince, but they don’t have much to work with beyond that. This leaves the film feeling as if it were written for the sake of wish-fulfilment rather than as a serious piece of drama.