THE DAMNED is a horror thriller with a dark psychological survival story. One that shows us how folklore can become poisonous when you’re already starving and struggling with the elements.
We’re in Iceland during the winter and nothing is easy or safe. The weather is one thing you struggle with, food is scarce and superstition can get the best of anyone when things go from bad to worse.
The horror of winter
The winter has always been tough in countries where it gets very cold, but it was still much worse if we go a century or two back in time. In The Damned, we follow Eve (Odessa Young) during one 19th-century winter in Iceland.
Along with her crew of fishermen (she inherited her husband’s business), they are not having any luck fishing. In fact, they’ve already started to consider eating the bait instead of using it for fishing.
Things take a turn for the worse when they come across a shipwreck. Or rather, they see a ship singing right off the coast of their cabin. It should be possible to save them, but is it really in their situation?!
While they could probably save the people being shipwrecked from drowning, they can’t do anything else. Meaning they have no food or even enough room to offer them shelter. In fact, they can’t even manage to bring them to shore as their own boat is too small.
The shipwrecked survivors would drag everyone down if they tried to get on board the boat, so really, saving them isn’t possible. But can they live with doing nothing?
This may sound like a moral dilemma and nothing much like an actual horror movie. However, superstition will come into play and as people die, bodies also enter the lives of the fishermen.
And while bodies should stay dead, superstition says this may not always be the case. Believe me when I say that The Damned is definitely a horror movie!
Watch The Damned in theaters in the US and UK
The writer and director of The Damned is Thordur Palsson. This native Icelandic director has a great grip on the cold and ice, making it palpable through the screen. He was also the creator of the Netflix series The Valhalla Murders, which you should definitely watch.
Alongside Oddesa Young (The Stand) we see Joe Cole (Black Mirror) in a key role. This isn’t the first time Joe Cole has been in the chilling circumstances of surviving in ice and snow. He was also in Against the Ice with Nicolai Coster-Waldau. However, the story was very different.
Overall, The Damned worked remarkably well in terms of horror and setting an eerie and ominous vibe. Also, the cast was wonderful in all their respective roles. Truly some terrifying performances.
However, it also had a few lulls along the way despite its relatively short runtime. Seeing it in a theater will probably improve the viewing experience, so do watch it on the big screen if you can.
The Damned is out in US Theaters on January 3, 2025, and in UK cinemas from January 10, 2025.
