WHERE’S ROSE: A Bleak & Transfixing Tale of True Evil

The horror trend of possession and paranoia continued throughout the decades, with some filmmakers tinkering with the concept in a way that audiences will find novel and desirable. Recently, there has been an influx of stories about nefarious children who may or may not be possessed. From Jaume Collet-Serra’s Orphan to Lee Cronin’s The Hole in the Ground and Nicholas McCarthy’s The Prodigy, children from hell are a fashionable trend in horror. Where’s Rose is John Mathis’ attempt at realizing that trend, and while the film falls victim to perfunctory presentation, this is a stark piece of horror that dips its toe into fantasy and reality. Evil comes in many shapes and sizes, and often when we least expect it.

A Horror Film Grounded in Reality & Fantasy

Eric Daniels (Ty Simpkins of Insidious & Iron Man 3) is a popular high school student whose priorities surround football and academics. He’s on his way to college on a full-ride scholarship, where he will realize his full potential and make his middle-class family proud. However, Eric’s future is put on hold when his little sister Rose (Skyler Elyse Philpot) goes missing. She is not gone for long, however, and it is not long after Rose’s return that Eric starts to suspect something demonic has returned in her place.

Has Eric gone unhinged? Writer-director John Mathis almost immediately makes it clear that his suspicions are well founded. Rose is no longer interested in eating her favorite foods, and she does not remember her best friend’s name. Something is off, and Eric is intent on figuring out who, or what has taken over Rose’s body.

The movie opens ominously, with Rose talking to an unseen entity in the woods. Her brother, who is mowing the lawn and listening to motivational audio, offers a curious glance, convinced she is talking to an imaginary friend. Back at the Daniels’ humble abode, their neighbors, the Waters, are coming over for dinner. Afterward, Eric’s parents (Kathy Searle and Nick Basta) go out for the night, leaving Rose in the care of Jessica Waters (Anneliese Judge). The next morning, Rose is gone, and the mystery begins, leading to revelations and confrontations that crack the foundation between apparent good and evil, as well as the spaces in-between.

Where’s Rose is a contained story revolving around Eric. The camera stays fixated on Eric and how he perceives Rose’s return and how he thinks his loved ones are responding to her return. Eric carries himself stiffly and without too much emotion, which could be explained by grief, guilt, or his emerging suspicions about Rose. Mathis has a few surprises in store, and he finds a compelling lead in Ty Simpkins, who vitalizes Eric’s frantic behavior with a nifty selection of leers that speak volumes. Eric’s interactions with his parents, with Jessica, and with his friends bring more mystery to the proceedings, especially when it comes to the secrets and desires Eric is desperately trying to keep to himself. But there are glimpses that show Eric in his embittered state. Still, the dynamic between Eric and his family and friends lacks attention and nuance. Additionally, the supporting cast is not up to Simpkins’s level of acting, but the horror is in no way greatly impacted.

From the moment the forest setting is established, a steady camera, usually positioned from Eric’s point of view, regularly zooms in on a hidden evil lurking about in the woods that Rose is drawn to. Meanwhile, occasional uses of red lighting emanate the devilish color of evil. Combine these two stylistic choices with Jason Obermeier’s solemn score that builds to a crescendo whenever Eric looks with a suspicious eye, and one cannot help but sense a climate of dread and gloom that is consuming the characters and audiences alike.

As for the actual mystery of Rose, there is more lucidity than one would expect. Skyler Elyse Philpot gives an appropriately creepy performance as a child consumed by evil, which helps enliven the terror. Once the evil has revealed itself, Mathis goes for a bolder and more poignant approach which probably functioned better on paper.

Whether or not the ending takes you by surprise, the reveal feels like a natural progression thanks to Eric being a well-written character and Simpkins governing his role with patience and restraint. However, the execution of the final sequence is a bit muddled. Coupled with weird cuts and an ambitious tonal line that is hard for any filmmaker to grasp fully, the arrangement of what is revealed and what is pondered is unsatisfying. Even so, there is much to admire about the film’s portrayal of evil and misogyny, and what truly makes a monster. That being said, it would have been beneficial to see more of the aftermath.

Where’s Rose: Conclusion

John Mathis’ Where’s Rose is more concerned about real-life horrors than it is with fantastical ones, and it is all the better for it. While not everything comes together, there is nothing quite as frightening as seeing an evil blossom and exist within somebody who presents themselves as being charming and harmlessly reserved. Mathis finds thematic value through the handling of the well-defined characters, making this low-budget horror film temptingly grim and genuinely haunting.

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Where’s Rose is now playing in select theaters and is available on VOD starting August 30. 

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