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Cast: Arron Kinser, Marissa Pistone, Spencer Garrett, Harry Lennix, Doug Jones
Tragedy strikes married couple Lily and Paul, when her father dies. Lily brings home the urn, housing her father's cremated remains, forcing Paul to, on a daily basis, face his despised father-in-law. Soon after, the lid to the urn mysteriously disappears and Paul experiences unearthly evewhich, like a twisted joke, only he can see.
"Cruel Will" tells the story of Paul and Lily. We are not given much of a background regarding their marriage but you assume they are a happy couple. But their marriage soon becomes shaken after Lily receives a call with news that her dad has died. After the funeral Lily brings her dad's ashes home with her in an urn but when the lid somehow disappears it is Paul who begins seeing things and acting strange.
Some of the flashbacks indicate that the father was somewhat abusive to Lily and he did not like Paul at all which seems to be the reason Paul is the one being harassed. To talk more about what happens in the film would only spoil it for those waiting to see it so I am not going to go into anymore details here but I can tell you that the story does have a few twists and turns along the way which you won't see coming. "Cruel Will" is a fast moving psychological thriller that keeps you on the edge, there's also some frightening moments in the film as well.
Acting wise everyone did a terrific job in the film. Arron Kinser has perhaps the most difficult role playing Paul since it is him that is effected and haunted, Arron does a terrific job and his range from being normal one minute to being on the edge of insanity was brilliant. Marissa Pistone is also amazing as Lily, she too has her fair share of emotions to express and she really delivers here. The supporting cast all did a great job in the film as well including the always incredible Doug Jones who plays Adrian, the father who is determined to wreak havoc even in the afterlife. Production wise the film looks fantastic considering it was done on a small budget. First time Writer/Director, Arthur Romeo deserves a lot of credit here as well. Not only does he have the ability to tell a scary and convincing story but his direction was flawless as well.
"Cruel Will" is an effective, solid thriller from beginning to end, it generates plenty of suspense and scares and it keeps you on the edge of your seat the entire time. The film also has an amazing ending as well which really topped off an already terrific film. If you like this sorting of supernatural/psychological thriller then I highly recommend checking this out when it comes to DVD on April 2nd. You can Pre-order it HERE.
Released by Osiris Entertainment
**** Out Of *****