'Grace' Movie Review

A freak car accident, however, throws things for a loop. Michael dies, as does the unborn child. As Patricia cares for Madeline in the clinic, they decide that she will carry the baby to term rather than inducing labor. Madeline returns home in a daze and sleepwalks through the remaining two weeks of her pregnancy, even venturing out to shop for baby items in a disillusioned stupor.

When she finally goes into labor, everyone involved -- except perhaps Madeline -- is surprised when the dead baby starts to nurse. "Her name is Grace," Madeline calmly tells Patricia. Unlike in the short film upon which it's based, Grace appears healthy and normal, and tests show nothing wrong.

However, after Madeline brings the girl home, Grace begins to display troubling symptoms. Her hair starts falling out, her body temperature is dangerously low, she develops an odor and flies become attracted to her. Most disturbing, she refuses to drink milk. When Grace bites too hard while nursing and ends up drawing blood, Madeline is horrified to find out that milk isn't the baby's drink of choice.

Not that it's as good as either of those films, of course. Despite the intriguing central concept, the movie actually doesn't play all that originally. It's predictable how Madeline will react to Grace's thirst and that things will turn into a bit of a Hellraiser scenario, with mother bringing lambs to the slaughter for the sake of an incapacitated loved one. All that remains to be determined is how the matter will end, and Grace goes the curious route of undermining its effort to create a refined, thoughtful horror movie by tacking on a low-brow "shock" ending.

The script, written by Solet and Roth, does manage to paint some provocative dynamics between Madeline and the primary women in her life, Patricia and Vivian. Both roles are played sharply by veteran actresses Ferris and Rose, with Patricia the caring but awkwardly affectionate guardian and Vivian the cold manipulator quietly grieving for her lost son. By comparison, the character of Madeline is flat and uninteresting, single-minded and predictable; unfortunately, she dominates the movie.

As a director, Solet makes some odd choices. Perhaps trying to create a dreamlike air, he uses a filter to fuzz out the edges of the picture for long stretches. At other times, his use of light is questionable; one scene in particular is shot directly into the glaring sun shining through a window. As you might expect from a first-time director (feature-wise), it feels like he's trying too hard, and his efforts become intrusive. His style should be as subtle as his film.

Despite its subtlety -- the gore and exploitive elements being relatively low-key -- Grace is a "furrowed brow" movie, with content designed to disturb and provoke response. Its primary modus operandi for generating cringes is, of course, the dead (or undead) baby, whose presence smears a general sense of discomfort across the film, conjuring images of abortion and miscarriage. I would say that it's the type of movie that's more admirable than enjoyable, but since little other than the acting is done particularly well, I can't call it especially admirable.

• Acting: B (Ladd is OK, but Rose and Ferris are the standouts.)
• Direction: C- (Some odd choices prove distracting and overreaching.)
• Script: C (Has an intriguing concept with relationships that have some dramatic resonance, but doesn't do enough with the potential and ends on a sour note.)
• Gore/Effects: C (CGI and baby effects reflect the low budget.)
• Overall: C (Bleak and underachieving, despite its unnerving potential.)