When the Lights Went Out

When the Lights Went Out is a spooky horror movie from 2012 that takes viewers back to the 1970s in a small Yorkshire town in England. The movie is directed by Pat Holden and stars Kate Ashfield, Steven Waddington, and Craig Parkinson.

The story is set in a three-bedroom semi-detached house on a typical Yorkshire street. The Maynard family, including the parents Jenny and Len, their teenage daughter Sally, and younger daughter Lucy, move into the house hoping for a fresh start after the father loses his job. But the house is already inhabited by something sinister, unseen, and malevolent.

Strange occurrences begin to happen in the house immediately upon the Maynards' arrival. The family's dog barks furiously at unseen intruders within the house, and the family becomes awoken at night by strange banging sounds. Jenny soon discovers that the house has a dark history- a previous tenant, a local woman who dabbled in the occult, and died in the house nearly two decades ago.

As the activity in the house intensifies, the film shifts into high gear, and the scares follow one another at a rapid pace. The story is masterfully paced, leaving the audience always on edge, never quite sure what might jump out next.

The creepy scenes play upon the classic horror conventions: creaky floorboards, flickering lights, inexplicable noises, and moving objects in the dark. However, the movie manages to keep the scares fresh and often finds a way to ramp up the horror to the next level. Director Holden's use of suspenseful and eerie music helps the audience to continuously feel a sense of dread and unease.

The film is set against the backdrop of the 1970s in England, and the production design team does an excellent job of capturing the era's details. The house itself is a perfect representation of the period, from the wallpaper to the furniture to the design of the telephones.

When the Lights Went Out is a well-acted and well-written movie that hooks the audience in and keeps them engaged until the very end. Kate Ashfield as Jenny delivers a particularly outstanding performance, capturing the fear and anxiety of a mother attempting to protect her children from an unseen threat.

In conclusion, When the Lights Went Out is an effectively scary horror movie. It's not for the faint-hearted as it has very few restful moments, with a never-ending stream of scares. But it does manage to strike a balance between building tension and delivering frights. If you are a fan of haunted house horror movies, this is a must-watch.