INTO THE WOODS // A FILM REVIEW OF "ENTWINED"
The spookiness held within the dark of the woods is explored in the new Greek film ENTWINED. Director Minos Nikolakakis (who also co-wrote the script with John De Holland) has crafted a moody and strange film that starts off intriguing but sadly does not finish as strong. Prometheus Aleifer stars as Panos, a man who has come to a small Greek village as their new doctor. He's just lost his father and seems to be seeking a quiet refuge. The locals don't take a shine to him, nearly shunning him as they inform that they've never actually had a doctor there. This is a town far away from modern life and set in their ways. When he hears strange noises at night, he investigates them and finds a woman living in the woods named Danae (Anastasia Rafaella Konidi). She tells him that she has no need for anything but the "old ways" and only has trust in the forest and the nature around her.
The locals tell him that he should leave it be, as some things are meant to be left alone. He doesn't though, and heads to the woods again. He drinks a brew that she has concocted and then immediatly needs to rest. Slowly, he begins to fall under her spell and strange things begin to happen to him and to things around him. He starts by desperately trying to find a way to escape, as the woods seems to not want him to leave. Are they alive? Is there truly a plan to keep him there? Or is he slowly losing his mind? As the questions build, that's where things fall apart. There's a lot of mood set up, but no real fear. Danae is manipulative but kind, so we never feel a true danger from her. We do want the good doctor to escape, but as the film grinds to a frustratingly slow pace, we start to lose any interest in if he will escape, as there isn't anything filling the story but mood. There's not real character development and when we get to the big finale, it's more of a whimper than a bang.
Nikolakakis succeeds in creating an atmosphere that is frightening to begin with, but fails in the final execution of horror. Both Aleifer and Konidi lend strong performances, but what we're left with is a film that inches slowly towards a conclusion that is neither exciting nor satisfying. Much like the cursed woods in this village, ENTWINED draws you in but leaves you hoping for a better finish.
GRADE: C-
WRITTEN BY John De Holland, Minos Nikolakakis DIRECTED BY Minos Nikolakakis STARRING Prometheus Aleifer, Anastasia Rafaella Konidi, John De Holland. Now Playing on Digital Cinemas.