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Cast: Danika Vandersteen, Woodrow Graves, Andrew Gillis
The Crescent follows a mother and her toddler son as they struggle to find spiritual healing after an unexpected death in the family. As they attempt to rebuild their bond, a mysterious force from the sea begins to haunt them. The film is a transcendent look at loss, grief and single parenting, told through the entrancing art of marbling and the eyes of a two-year-old.
'The Crescent' tells the story of Beth and her Son, Lowen. As the film opens, we find out that Beth has lost her husband in a tragic accident. She then decides to go to the crescent where her mother has a home and spend time with her son alone as she mourns her loss and tries to recover from it.
Most of the burden and heartache is on Beth because her little boy isn't old enough to understand it all. All he wants to do is play and wonder around which keeps Beth more than busy. After a day or so things start getting a little strange. An older man they meet on the beach is the first. He asks the little boy if he wants to go in the water and then volunteers himself to babysit the boy which of course Beth ignores. Second is the home's doorbell which makes the most disturbing sound and it goes off all by itself.
From there on the film gets weirder(in a good way) as it moves along. 'The Crescent' is listed as a horror/mystery and there is a lot of mystery going on. For a large portion of the film viewers are left to wonder what exactly is going on, where the movie is headed and what happened to Beth's husband. But don't worry those are answered later on in the film but it does take a long time to get there because the film is slow burn.
This is not going to be a film for everyone, it is not a conventional horror film. It is more an art house film that plays out in an almost dream like state. To be honest I wasn't sure what to make of the film at first but I did find it interesting and engaging even with its slow pace. Director, Seth A. Smith has taken what could have been a simple story and turned it into a thinking man's horror film. After the big twist at the end you are left thinking about the film long after. Fans of Independent cinema are going to want to check out 'The Crescent.' I am not going to give away the film's secrets here so not to ruin it for those wanting to see the movie but I will say that this is an intelligent, clever, smart and creepy story of the supernatural that slowly gets into your head and under your skin and it stays there long after the credits begin to roll. 'The Crescent' will makes its debut across Canada this August. The dates are:
Opening August 10 - Cineplex Theatres across Canada - one week engagement:
Toronto - Cineplex Yonge & Dundas
Vancouver - Cineplex Park Theatre
Edmonton - Cineplex South Edmonton
Montreal - Cineplex Odeon Latin Quarter
Winnipeg - Cineplex Odeon McGillivray
Calgary - Cineplex Odeon Eau Claire
Halifax - Cineplex Cinemas Parklane
Special Screening August 15:
Ottawa - The Mayfair Theatre
The Crescent will then be released on Amazon Prime, iTunes and VOD starting September 4. The film is distributed in Canada by Raven Banner Releasing.
Released by Raven Banner Releasing
**** Out Of *****