After agreeing to be an overnight shomer (a Jewish practice in which a person watches over the body of a recently deceased community member), a young man who's lost his faith discovers the house in which he's sitting the vigil hides a dark and terrifying secret.
IFC Midnight distributes in the US.
The feature film directorial debut of Keith Thomas.
Described as being "rooted in Jewish culture and mysticism, THE VIGIL is a supernatural horror film set in a unique world: The Hasidic community of "Boro" Park, Brooklyn."
IFC Midnight will release The Vigil in the US to select theaters, VOD and digital platforms on February 26th, 2021.
Filmmaker Keith Thomas will see his festival hit The Vigil released here in the United States next year via IFC Midnight, but before then it will arrive on UK VOD platforms November 30th, 2020 and on DVD January 4, 2021.
November 30th and I just watched The Vigil here in the UK on Plex.
A promising debut.
Unnerving in places, slightly plodding in others. The visual darkness is handled extremely well. The dialogue is heavily mixed with no subtitles. There seems to be a combination of English, French, Polish & Yiddish. Frustratingly so as it would be in real life for the average person who did not understand/speak all of those tongues. Text messaging features quite a bit and is in a smallish font so you may have to sit slightly closer to the screen than usual although a good amount of that is not in English.
In the Hasidic community of Boro Park, Brooklyn, a despondent young man, short on both faith and funds, reluctantly agrees to assume the responsibility of an overnight shimmer and fulfill the Jewish practice of watching over the body of a deceased member of the Orthodox community. With only the company of the recently departed and an ailing widow who expresses cryptic reservations as to the man's ability to carry out the task, he soon finds himself exposed to a terrifying haunting within the claustrophobic confines of a home that has become host to a malevolent entity. In what is essentially a one-man show, Dave Davis is profoundly affecting in his portrayal of the hesitant sentinel, exuding an empathetic combination of frayed nerves and timid weariness. Throughout this uncanny night, his vigil gradually transforms into a harrowing spiritual investigation of both his cursed surroundings and his pitiable past - a journey in which the very recesses of his community's collective trauma ..
A Shomer for the most part is an individual of Jewish faith who is entrusted with watching over the deceased body until He or She is laid to rest........But what if a Demon is attached to the deceased body?? Sounds like a cool idea for a horror movie, You're damn right it is and I tell you all about it and if this Flick is worth a watch in my review........Thanks so much for watching.....H