The Hatred   Starring: Sarah Davenport, Andrew Divoff and Darby Walker Distributor: Thunderbird Releasing RRP: £15.99 TRL420 Certificate: 15 Release Date: 08 October 2018

A Nazi who had close connections with Hitler has settled in America, married, and has a teenage daughter. He is already very strict, but the arrival of an Iron Cross has fatal repercussions for the whole family. The cross is a religious artefact taken by the Germans during the French occupation. It was said to have the power to imbue the possessor with luck and good fortune. However, a consequence of this is that everything negative has been soaked-up by the cross. It is sealed-up in the wall of the basement but immediately begins to affect the family. The man drowns his daughter when she asserts her independence and, as a result, her mother kills the Nazi. Fast forward to the present: four teenage girls and a younger girl are staying at the house for the weekend, but a malevolent presence remains – as does the Iron Cross...

The interesting part of this story, and all of the intrigue, is immediately lost the moment we move to the present day. It basically reverts to an amalgamation of teen horror and haunted house scenario. The teen characters are pretty bland, and the little girl initially points towards the Poltergeist connection with the dead, but just as quickly forgets about it. The ghost of the murdered girl manifests itself gradually, which I always believe is an unrealistic situation. If a vengeful spirit was going to be violent it would be so from the start. What we get is a number of cheap camera tricks leading up to a Japanese-style full ghost apparition, complete with black tendrils seeping into the walls and ceiling. We then learn she just wants her body to be found – which not only defies the logic of what has gone before but, again, ‘borrows’ from countless other films.

The ghost of the Nazi father, in his heavy weeding gear, is only seen once as the movie concludes. It’s as if director Michael G. Kehoe is hoping to kick start a franchise. The film doesn’t seem to flow in a logical linear fashion, and I wonder if the script could have been improved by a couple more drafts. Probably not. They should probably have had a couple of draughts down the pub instead. There’s simply not enough content or originality. The Iron Cross remains in the wall, and the Nazi only makes his post death appearance when the story is done. It’s as if part of the tale has been saved for a sequel. As every writer worth his salt will tell you: put all of your eggs in one basket. If the first script or book doesn’t work, you won’t get the opportunity to do a sequel.

4

Ty Power