Warning: This article contains spoilers.
“Average family moves into a hundred-year-old home and discovers they’re not alone” sounds like it could be the tagline of perhaps a hundred different horror films, but the plot twist, cinematography and layered emotion in Presence truly sets it apart. While most movies are told through a third person point-of-view or directly from the protagonists, Soderbergh takes another approach: telling a story from the perspective of the haunter. The film begins with a dark tour of the home through an unusually shaky and narrow viewpoint. While the family is talking on the porch, only muted murmurs and random keywords can be heard, as if we’re trapped inside the home. There’s also an ominous set of stairs that we never go up to explore. As the film progresses, it becomes increasingly clear why this is our viewpoint; we are the Presence bound to the home.
Once this clicks, it’s tempting to immediately restart the movie, though you won’t even be halfway through when you hit this revelation. From there, things take on a voyeuristic feeling, as the invisible Presence moves around the home and observes the family. The Presence is not aggressive and has no ill intent. In fact, it grows an attachment to Chloe (Callina Liang), the family’s daughter who is navigating through her grief over the recent death of her friend. Following Chloe around and making a home base in her closet, the Presence’s attachment to Chloe becomes strong enough to begin protecting her. At the same time, Chloe also begins to sense the Presence, and she shares this with her family, believing it’s her departed friend. Although her family doesn’t initially believe her, her brother Tyler (Eddy Maday) has an incident with the Presence that earns his belief. The family is scared, but Chloe reassures them it means no harm.
However, Chloe finds herself thrust into life-threatening danger, and in no part due to the Presence. It’s actually up to the Presence to save her. Through this unique twist, the Presence is a protector and doer of good, rather than a fear-inducing entity. In a way, this twist suggests something about the true nature of humans, as people may be more inclined to do evil and harm others than something supernatural. This message is a hard pill to swallow, but it’s executed so subtly yet clearly in this film that it elevates the viewing experience.
One thing that was extraordinarily impressive was that none of the actors ever made eye contact with the camera. Although the Presence hovers close to them, no one ever breaks the fourth wall and looks directly at the camera. This can be quite challenging considering that this perspective could only be executed by filming up-close and oftentimes likely with a handheld camera. Even while Chloe is looking for the Presence in her room, she never looks at it face-to-face.
Despite a plot that sounds overdone on the surface, Director Soderbergh turned a conventional scenario into a new movie with an original concept and unique execution. While the film is billed as a thriller/horror, there’s not much suspense or spookiness, but it leans more into the psychological. With its fresh perspective, thought-provoking take on society, and impressive cinematography and acting, Presence is definitely a movie to watch at least once, if not twice.
The film is set to premiere in U.S. theaters on January 19.
