Directed by Don Swanson, Occurrence at Mills Creek is a horror thriller hybrid about a young woman named Clara (Ava Psoras) who finds herself surrounded by death and questions without answers. After the death of her sister, Clara begins to find herself falling deeper into a darkness she has no way to control.
Occurrence at Mills Creek certainly maintains a dramatic, moody tone throughout. A lot of effort has clearly gone into the film, which utilises multiple locations and sports a large cast. Swanson, who wrote as well as directed the film, doesn’t allow the audience a moment of equilibrium; we are plunged straight into the funeral of Clara’s sister. The film utilises flashbacks well, incorporating them into the narrative to elucidate points of the plot. This is how we discover exactly what happened the day her sister died and begin to understand the guilt that Clara must be feeling. But we soon realise she doesn’t seem to feel any guilt at all.
As would be expected, there are lots of instances of things that go bump in the night; taps turning themselves on, coffins closing etc. The use of non-diegetic music adds to this creation of tension perhaps more so than the supernatural elements, as does the editing. At some points, the horror is extremely graphic and deals with some very dark themes. Throughout I wasn’t quite sure which elements were produced by the deteriorated psychological state of the protagonist and which were supernatural occurrences, however I think this adds to the effect of the film.
The way Clara is characterised places her more as the antagonist than as a likeable character. She is dry, emotionless and difficult to empathise with which leads to some confusion for the viewer as to how they should engage with her. I think her true colours are slowly revealed throughout the film but the character could benefit from a more interesting arc. Psoras portrayal of Clara fits this idea of a girl who has no capacity for empathy and is at times quite chilling. All of the characters could do with a little light and shade as the dialogue tends to be delivered all on one level.
However, the discussion between Clara and her Aunt Cecilia (Mary Sack) after the funeral of Clara’s father (Joe Fishel) is compelling and engaging. Sack characterises her character brilliantly and adds some much needed grounding to the films large cast. Mills Creek could have benefited from focusing on a group of core characters as occasionally it’s difficult to keep track of who is who, however organising such a large group of people is highly commendable.
The narrative really starts to pick up after Victors funeral. The scene in the bar is a particular highlight, utilising inventive cinematography, lighting and sound. The song performed by singer songwriter Mia Zanotti that accompanies the scene really captures the mood and adds another level to the film. Maintaining this pace and level of inventiveness, the scene where Clara sees a double vision of her therapist, Dr Vicki, is great. It really captures the characters mental state. It was also interesting to find out that this scene wasn’t camera trickery or editing, but the two therapists were actually played by identical twins (Dana and Grace Langshaw).
The film only really begins to delve into the idea of a family curse in the final act, which doesn’t give much chance for development. However, it does introduce two other interesting characters; Aunt Estelle (Lynda Marnoni), who suffers from dementia and her carer, Barney (John-Patrick Driscoll). Driscoll plays a great character which adds quite a bit of light to the narrative.
As the film draws to a close, all hell breaks loose in the very graphic and violent climax. This could have benefitted from a little more lead up as the final twist happens too close to the end for the maximum impact to be felt. Despite that, the psychological and horror elements of the film are all well represented.
Occurrence at Mills Creek has all the elements to be a brilliant thriller, these elements just require a little refining, and a stronger direction. An enjoyable film nonetheless! Available to watch on Amazon Prime and Tubi now. Below are two music videos from the film’s features songs, performed by Mia Z.