From writer and director Zu Quirke and prolific indie horror juggernaut Blumhouse Productions, “Nocturne” is a part of the “Welcome to the Blumhouse” collection that the company created for the streaming service Amazon Prime, where it is currently available for viewing. It stars Sydney Sweeney, Madison Iseman, Jacques Colimon, Ivan Shaw and Julie Benz.
“Nocturne” is a “mad artist” story in the same vein as “Black Swan” and “Whiplash.” It tells the story of Juliet, an aspiring classical musician living in the shadow of her twin sister Vivian, with whom she attends a prestigious music academy. Her luck begins to change at the start of the movie when she comes across the journal of a classmate who took their own life. The songs contained within the journal push her musical ability to new heights, but she slowly realizes that there is a malevolent force contained within its pages.
First and foremost, “Nocturne” is a horror film, meaning its primary purpose is to provide its audience with satisfactory scares, and by that standard, it achieves moderate success. Unlike other Blumhouse pictures, the film mostly avoids an escalating body count of increasingly over-the-top kills in favor of building a creepy atmosphere through slow-burning suspense. This is largely accomplished by lead actress Sweeney, who perfectly captures the internal turmoil and resentment of an overshadowed artist, but hides behind an empty smile and sophisticated manners. Every scene she is in, there is this constant dread that she could snap at the slightest provocation.
Lindberg Academy, the elite prep school that the sisters attend, is a most appropriate setting for this kind of story. Its high standard, pressure cooker atmosphere feels almost too real, and is something that students who attend similar kinds of academies can relate to. During assemblies and lunch hours, long, suspenseful shots put viewers in Juliet’s mindset, which only adds to the film’s creepy mood.
The staff of Lindenberg’s music department is headed by Gordon, played by JoNell Kennedy, and music teachers Roger and Dr. Cask, played by John Rothman and Ivan Shaw, respectively. Kennedy does nothing special in her turn as a prep school principal, hitting the familiar beats of polite, Stepford smiles hiding rank opportunism, but offering nothing subversive. The same can be said for “jaded, wash-out teacher” types like Roger and Cask, though at the very least, they tie in to “Nocturne’s” central theme: aspirations of greatness dashed by mediocre talent.
While the story that “Nocturne” is telling has been done many times before, it might have been better to simply focus on being a grounded psychological thriller about a young woman slowly unraveling under pressure. Unfortunately, in an impotent attempt at a hook for more traditional horror fans, the story adds a vaguely supernatural notebook to its premise.
The movie feels so confused in its use of this plot point that it almost seems as if it was added in post-production. As Juliet begins to act out the “prophecies” contained in its pages represented by admittedly creepy drawings, she is disturbed by random flashes of light and some generic body horror hallucinations. It all ultimately builds to a predictable, somewhat vapid, conclusion that will just leave viewers more confused than haunted.
Overall, “Nocturne” is just an average Blumhouse movie. Its only real strengths are some moody cinematography and strong performances by its cast. Otherwise, it is difficult to recommend.
Rating: 5 Hawks out of 10
