The break-out horror movie smash of the year that has been electrifying hardened genre fans and non-horror fans alike, “The Pact” combines the supernatural terrors of “Paranormal Activity” with the tense atmospherics of a serial killer thriller to create a unique, modern-day take on the classic ghost story.
First-time feature director Nicholas McCarthy, sexy up-and-coming female lead Caity Lotz (Death Valley; Mad Men), Casper Van Dien (Sleepy Hollow; Starship Troopers), Agnes Bruckner (Kill Theory; Vacancy 2: The First Cut; Blood And Chocolate), Haley Hudson (Killer By Nature; Freaky Friday) and Kathleen Rose Perkins (Episodes).
Following the death of her mother, Annie receives a phone call from her former drug addict sister, Nicole, imploring her to come back to visit their family home and to attend their mother’s funeral. Still tortured by memories of a troubled childhood, Annie is reluctant to revisit the past, but eventually agrees to Nicole’s request. However, on arrival at the house she finds no trace of her sister and, when Nicole fails to turn up at the funeral, Annie simply assumes she has relapsed into drug use as a way of dealing with her loss. Not wishing to spend the night alone in her mother’s house, Annie invites her cousin, Liz, and Nicole’s estranged young daughter to stay over.
But it’s not long before Annie begins to sense another, unseen presence in their midst. Household objects are inexplicably moved around, strange noise are heard during the night and a broken picture frame reveals a photo of a sinister figure. Then all hell breaks loose.
Annie finds herself physically threatened by this malign supernatural force residing within the house and, following a particularly terrifying assault, discovers that Liz, too, has disappeared. With her life now seriously at risk, and time running out, Annie is forced to confront her worst fears and solve the mystery surrounding her family’s history before it is too late.
When it comes to real scares, you can’t beat a really good ghost story and this one ranks right up there with the best of them. Very much in the tradition of “Insidious”, “Stir Of Echoes”, “The Entity” and “The Haunting”, this is a highly atmospheric and genuinely frightening supernatural shocker that had us completely on edge throughout, elicited screams and built to a climax that had us peering through our fingers. It also features a stand-out lead performance by Caity Lotz as Annie, a strong and sexy biker chick who really isn’t one to be messed with.