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ABC News
25-04-2025
- Entertainment
- ABC News
Fréwaka is the new Irish folk horror film. And it's full of surprises
Fréwaka, a word taken from the longer Irish word 'fréamhacha', translates to 'roots', which Irish writer-director Aislinn Clarke's sophomore film traverses all manners of. Fast facts about Frewaka What: An unsettling Irish folk horror film about the inheritance of trauma. Starring: Clare Monnelly, Bríd Ní Neachtain, Aleksandra Bystrzhitskaya Directed by: Aislinn Clarke When: Streaming on Shudder from April 25 Likely to make you feel: Unnerved The roots of Ireland's collective historical trauma around the The roots of matrilineal, intergenerational violence. The roots of birth, death and everything between in a state where folklore, superstition and myth intermingle with the pervasive influence of the Catholic Church. The largely Irish-language film, featuring almost exclusively women, opens with two supremely unnerving scenes. In 1973, Peig (Grace Collender) is abducted from her own wedding, with her newlywed finding her ring abandoned on the ground and nothing else. Decades later in the present, an older woman's body is discovered, weeks after dying, by emergency service workers. "[Brid Ni Neachtain] is not as spiky as Peig, but she really brought her to life, phenomenally," Clarke told ( Supplied: Shudder ) Siubhán or 'Shoo' (Clare Monnelly, Small Things Like These) arrives at the home of her estranged dead mother with her bright-eyed, pregnant Ukrainian fiancée Mila (Aleksandra Bystrzhitskaya) to clean up the detritus of her life. Shoo eyes her mother's possessions dispassionately before somewhat audaciously leaving Mila to deal with the mess — Shoo's a live-in care worker in training who's been dispatched to a remote Irish village to look after the very same Peig (Bríd Ní Neachtain, The Banshees of Inisherin) of the first scene, a now elderly woman ailing in the aftermath of a stroke and terrified of being visited by an undefined "them". Photo shows Close-up of Cillian Murphy wearing a beanie. This adaptation of Claire Keegan's Booker-nominated novel, tells a heartbreaking story of Ireland's infamous Magdalene Laundries. Thorny and recalcitrant, Peig has been diagnosed with paranoia, delusions and confusion, but the longer Shoo lives in the house and is intruded upon by apparitions of her dead mother, the more she begins to believe Peig when she says "they" are out to get her — to get them both. Fréwaka has all the classic tropes of a horror film. A sprawling, dilapidated house spread across two levels with a staircase utilised for maximum creepiness? Tick. Warnings from the local townsfolk to steer clear of said house, even as they themselves exude an unsettling otherworldliness? Tick. An absence of phone service? Tick. Fréwaka is less of a jump-scare film, and more one focused on the messiness of life — both in its living and the aftermath of death. Two scenes are so visceral you can almost smell the stink being depicted: Shoo gingerly opening a fridge containing the rotting remnants of her mother's life, and her chancing upon putrid broken milk bottles strewn across the entrance of Peig's house. Irish performance artist Die Hexen's score is startlingly piercing as it ratchets up to various apexes throughout, creating a sense of unease even when it's blindingly light outside. "My direct experiences in Ireland are of historical trauma," Clarke told The Hollywood Reporter. ( Supplied: Shudder ) Cinematographer Narayan Van Maele is intent on capturing characters in extreme close-ups, the action unfolding beneath or behind them blurred out as we're treated to the minutiae of their worries, hopes and desires. Similarly, the horror evoked by Clarke is highly personal even as it radiates to conjure something more all-encompassing. Religious iconography is rife and utilised to great effect; one of the most beautifully haunting scenes sees the motif of a red cross reflected in Shoo's wide irises. In the Ireland of Clarke's construction where the Catholic Church casts a pall over everything, religion is a source of discontent, not a salve — a glow-in-the-dark Virgin Mary and a looming portrait of Jesus seem more like portents of danger than redemption. When Shoo is haunted by her mother, it's religious verses she first hears — a reminder of moments of intense abuse. Irish fairy folklore is conjured to terrifying effect, as are menacing figures in medieval-looking straw masks — a sinister twist on festive 'mummers' — creepy goats a la The Witch's Black Phillip, and demonic figures trying to trespass the boundaries of a home similar to a vampire. "[Bríd Ní Neachtain] is such a joy to play with and to play opposite, and she gave it the absolute lash," Clare Monnelly (pictured) told RTE Radio 1. ( Supplied: Shudder ) The film is — at times very blatantly — a message that a continuing cycle of intergenerational trauma can only be confronted head-on. But Fréwaka's skilful, slow reveals — as we piece together the broader story of Peig and Shoo — are masterfully done. Peig's brittleness belies her emotional tenacity, while Shoo's quiet intensity, affected air of nonchalance and barely concealed anxiety call to mind the likes of Charlotte Gainsbourg. The slowly building rapport between the two as they manoeuvre their new-found dynamic is a joy to watch, particularly in their shared moments of levity that offset an otherwise heavy film. Catholic guilt, both on a personal and collective level, has found its eerie manifestation in Fréwaka — a film centred on the inheritance of Irish women's pain and suffering at the hands of the Church that bleeds into the present and lingers. Loading YouTube content Fréwaka is streaming on Shudder from April 25.
Irish Examiner
24-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Irish Examiner
Scary Éire: Why Irish horror films are having a moment
Steeped in the supernatural but anchored by our stories and history, Irish horror is having a moment, with tales of the unexpected and scary movies making waves at home and internationally. In a nation reared on stories of banshees and fairy forts, pookas and changelings, ghosts as well as more recent societal traumas, it makes perfect sense. Now, a new wave of talented storytellers are building on growing audience interest in our knack for bringing a scare to the screen. They include Bantry filmmaker Damian McCarthy. Following the international success of his most recent film, Oddity, McCarthy's latest drew Severance star Adam Scott to Ireland to film on location in West Cork. Hokum - shot at the recently opened West Cork Studios - stars Scott as a horror novelist who visits a remote Irish inn to spread his parents' ashes, unaware of rumours it is haunted by a witch. The film is being backed by Screen Ireland. The latest horror feature to come to our screens is in the Irish language. In cinemas from this weekend, Fréwaka tells of a young woman (Clare Monnelly) sent to a remote village to care for an agoraphobic woman Peig (Bríd Ní Neachtain). Peig lives in fear of Na Sídhe, sinister entities who she believes abducted her years before. Fréwaka's writer and director, Aislinn Clarke, believes that horror can be an interesting and unique way of looking at trauma in our lives and our histories. 'Horror is well placed to examine stuff like social trauma, generational trauma without being preachy, or worthy, or feeling like it's going to be a hard time for audiences,' says Clarke. 'Using metaphors, using the dream space to go into thinking about these things without being confronted by it too directly. Often people actually need that to start them off.' Fréwaka is the latest Irish horror film. The success of Fréwaka (meaning Roots) on the festival circuit in advance of release means that Clarke has spoken with audiences and industry people around the world - and has noticed a growing interest in Irish horror movies. 'It really is having a moment everywhere. I was in LA a few weeks ago, and everyone was talking about it like it's a phenomenon. For such a small number of people - there aren't that many of us - we're making a real impact, as we have done in other art forms as well." Clarke points out that many Irish traditional stories - the old folk tales - are very dark. "It's not really a surprise to me that we're making horrors. Historically, there wasn't that much infrastructure to allow filmmaking and new filmmakers to develop. It just wasn't there in the same way it might be in London or Hollywood,' says Clarke. As the Green Wave of Irish filmmakers and stars making their mark at home and abroad grows, it allows for more opportunity. 'It's not really surprising to me that as soon as we have that bedrock of that fertile ground, horror comes really quickly after that.' A growing number of Irish horror storytellers are bringing their spooky tales to Irish cinema audiences - but also driving strong international interest. An Taibhse (The Ghost) - made on a tiny budget by filmmaker John Farrelly and set in post-Famine Ireland - has made waves in Irish cinemas and at festivals in Brazil, Argentina and South Africa. West Cork filmmaker Damian McCarthy's Hokum is being produced by Julianne Forde and Ruth Treacy of Tailored Films. As well as their recent success with The Apprentice -the Oscar-nominated tale of the young Donald Trump - other Tailored productions include gothic horror The Lodgers. Bantry director Damian McCarthy's next film will star Severance actor Adam Scott. Picture: Marcin Lewandowski Kate Dolan's recent horror You Are Not My Mother offered an Irish perspective on a mystery around a possible changeling, while Lorcan Finnegan's NOCEBO starred Eva Green as a designer suffering from a mysterious illness. Finnegan will next direct Nicolas Cage in forthcoming thriller The Surfer. Lee Cronin's The Hole in the Ground, starring Séana Kerslake as a young mother who forms suspicions about her son, was a hit with audiences and critics. As the Irish reputation for scary movies grows, some filmmakers are drawing the interest of international studios. They include Kate Dolan, who is directing the thriller Soulm8te, to be released in cinemas worldwide next year. Some studios are also opting to make films on location in Ireland. Following his success with the latest film in the Evil Dead series, Evil Dead Rise, Irish filmmaker Lee Cronin is now shooting a new take on the iconic horror The Mummy in Ireland. Starring Jack Reynor, the film will be released internationally next year. Other big studio horrors recently filmed in Ireland include Abigail, the tale of a criminal gang who take a young girl (Irish actress Alisha Weir) to ransom, only to discover she is a vampire. Having impressed US studio bosses following the release of The Hole in the Ground, Irish writer Stephen Shields worked as co-writer on the movie, released here by Universal Pictures. That it was filmed in Ireland, he adds, was a happy coincidence. Stephen Shields wrote Abigail. 'It being shot here was just completely Kismet, just meant to be,' says Shields. 'What happened was, after Lee Cronin and I made The Hole in the Ground, I was in Los Angeles for a round of meetings. One of those meetings happened to be with Universal. I went in just to have a general conversation, had this idea for a vampire movie-heist movie in the back of my head. Universal really latched on to it.' Shields, too, feels that Irish horror filmmakers are having a moment and this is resonating internationally. 'We come from a land of fairy tales and myths, and a lot of them are very horror-centric. Now that we're growing up as filmmakers and making movies, they're coming to the forefront.' He also thinks that horror is one of the enduring staples in what is a time of ongoing change in screen entertainment. 'My personal opinion is that horror, of all the genres of filmmaking, is the most audience-friendly. And what I mean by that is, I think more people go to the cinema to watch horror because, in terms of a communal experience, it's a great genre to go and see. I put that up there with comedy as well. "It's very reactive, and that's not to say anything bad about dramas or anything like that, but I think people like to go to the cinema to have that emotional experience." Shields adds that you don't need a really big-name star to sell a good horror film. "It's always good when you have a big movie star - but I think the concept of horror itself is the thing people go to the cinema to see. It's the experience that sells. It serves as a great genre for attracting up and coming stars as well, which is always good. A lot of the most famous Hollywood movie stars out there started their journey in the horror space.' Fréwaka is in cinemas as from Friday, April 25. is in cinemas as from Friday, April 25. Abigail is on rental platforms including Sky and Apple TV
Irish Independent
24-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Irish Independent
Fréwaka review: Bloodcurdling folk horror hits home with its sideways glance at modern Ireland
Fréwaka, a blood-cooling saga about a carer arriving to a remote house to mind an elderly woman, has all the right ingredients – goats, sideways-glancing locals, arcane 'festivities' – while also reflecting real themes of isolation, abuse, and intergenerational trauma. Shoo (Clare Monnelly) and her pregnant partner (Aleksandra Bystrzhitskaya) have just moved into a dingy Dublin flat when she is called away to a small village. Locals reluctantly direct her to the backlanes home of Peig (Bríd Ní Neachtain). Initially wary of Shoo, Peig slowly comes around but maintains a visceral paranoia about a presence circling the pair. Laced with ambiguity and climaxing with rare control and dread, Clarke hits a bullseye with a folk horror that nods to a modern Ireland haunted by its own past. Monnelly and Ní Neachtain are excellent, as is the sublime cinematography and sound design of Narayan Van Maele and Die Hexen, respectively.
Irish Times
23-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Irish Times
Fréwaka review: Aislinn Clarke's Gaeltacht horror mines Irish mythology for socially conscious spookery
Fréwaka Director : Aislinn Clarke Cert : 15A Genre : Horror Starring : Clare Monnelly, Bríd Ní Neachtain, Aleksandra Bystrzhitskaya, Olga Wehrly Running Time : 1 hr 43 mins Just when you think the folk-horror vogue is all played out, along comes Aislinn Clarke's textured delve into Celtic mythology and intergenerational trauma. Siobhán (Clare Monnelly), known to her friends as Shoo, is a care assistant tidying things away after the suicide of her estranged abusive mother when she accepts an assignment in the Gaeltacht. Her reluctant patient is Peig (Bríd Ní Neachtain), an agoraphobic woman who believes the aos sí – the folkloric beings at the evil end of the fairy spectrum – abducted her on her wedding night decades earlier. Peig is concerned that Shoo and her Ukrainian fiancee, Mila (Aleksandra Bystrzhitskaya), are expecting a baby. Births, marriages and deaths form thin spaces for malevolent otherworldly forces, she warns. In common with The Devil's Doorway, this writer and director's debut horror film, from 2018, Fréwaka ambitiously mines Irish mythology and history for socially conscious spookery. Peig characterises the underworld as a place of coffin ships, Magdalene laundries, blighted fields and violent streets. These national traumas are amplified by a revealing rummage around Irish iconography: mummers, Sacred Heart lamps and a goat that could be Black Phillip's transatlantic cousin are employed to unsettling effect. READ MORE Unfriendly whispering locals add to the forlorn heroine's distress. A creepy traditional ballad seems to play wherever she goes. Is the grief-stricken Shoo hostage to her older charge's delusions or is something monstrous in the 'house below the house'? Terrific performances by Monnelly and Ní Neachtain keep us guessing. Narayan Van Maele, the cinematographer behind the Oscar-winning An Irish Goodbye, sneaks along as Shoo wanders through spooky corridors and along deserted country roads. Nicola Moroney's production design decks branches with ribbons, scissors and other mysterious talismans. And never mind the straw men: Die Hexen's disquieting electronic score is the scariest thing in the movie. In cinemas from Friday, April 25th, with previews from Wednesday, April 23rd
